Being dedicated to their work there is little room for love and romantic connections. Named easter island by the dutch explorer jacob roggeveen, who first spied it. According to diamond and heyerdahls version of the islands history, the huri. The mystery of easter island by katherine routledge. It details routledges journey by yacht from england to south america, around patagonia to chile and on to easter island, giving an account of its life, history and folklore.
This enthralling book deals with the now famous bird cult and the customs and beliefs of the islanders who lived on rapa nui. We visited easter island in sept 2017 and have compiled this list of best easter island books for the curious traveler. Discover the rapa nui people of easter island and the mysterious stone maoi that dot the island. A remarkable book, heavy in research and with a vivid description of easter island. Geologically one of the youngest inhabited territories on earth, easter island, located in the midpacific ocean, was, for most of its history, one of the most isolated its inhabitants, the rapa nui, have endured famines, epidemics of disease and cannibalism, civil war, environmental collapse, slave raids, various colonial contacts, and have seen their population crash on more than one occasi.
The mysteries of easter island world book encyclopedia. Easter island is the story of two women who went to the island and did research. A story about two journeys of transformation, forgiveness, and, ultimately, redemption, easter island is a powerful debut and a wonderfully intriguing book to discuss. Easter island is an island and special territory of chile in the southeastern pacific ocean, at the. List of books and articles about easter island online. The ancient pagan origins of easter ancient origins. One of the most interesting parts of their beliefs is also the subject of todays. There are many travel guide books to chile that contain a small section on easter island. Easter island is most famous for its nearly 1,000 extant monumental statues, called moai, created by the early rapa nui people.
This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of easter island by jennifer vanderbes. Located on the remote chilean territory of easter island, they tell a mysterious story of the island s early people and their obsession with rock carvings. Restrained passion and conflicted loyalties drive this sweeping debut novel, in which two women of different eras experience the mysteries of easter island. The world monuments fund on easter island opposite. Slowly unearthing the island s haunting past, they are forced to confront turbulent discoveries about themselves and the people they love, changing their lives forever.
The mystery of easter island travel smithsonian magazine. Head of a moat on temporary exhibition at the seagram building in new york city. The island stands in isolation 1,200 miles 1,900 kilometres east of pitcairn island and 2,200 miles west of chile. Easter island natives the rapa nui with a moai monolith. Explore fascinating mysteries and secrets of history and folklore from countries and cultures around the world. Many of these islands were discovered comparatively recently in our history, and. Those books only provide a brief glimpse and summary of what to expect during a visit to the island. Mackinnon reports in his new book, the once and future world, archeologists examined ancient garbage heaps on easter island looking for discarded bones and found that 60 percent of the. Easter island was named on easter day, 1722, by the dutch navigator jakob roggeven. Modem archaeological scientists and engineers try and recreate and decipher the mystery of easter island s moai statues by experimenting with.
Seaver kurze details the history of catholicism on rapa nui and. Linguists estimate easter island s first inhabitants arrived around a. The story of easter islands statues is extraordinary, but the story of how people came to be there in the first place is just as incredible. Best books on easter island easter island forum tripadvisor. The giant, mysterious stone men, or moai, for which easter island, or rapa nui, is known. The book begins with the story of how seaver kurze came to easter island and initiated her research on the. It was perfect because not only does it tell you history and legend, but also. How to visit easter island without breaking the bank. Im particularly interested in books that will give me the sort of info id get if i went on a guided tour. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. We managed to visit each major site at least twice and with the help of this book really got into the history and mysteries of the island. This guidebook includes the island s history, culture and all of its significant archaeological sites.
What happened along the way that caused the island ecosystem to collapse. Set in both 19 and sometime near the end of the twentieth century, it follows two women, one from each time period, who travel to easter island with different prospects. As befits the head of the institute of polynesian languages and literatures in auckland, new zealand, he has produced a scholarly and readable account of the island s turbulent history. Buy the book before you go it is available on the island but costs. Easter island covers roughly 64 square miles in the south pacific ocean, and is located some 2,300 miles from chiles west coast and 2,500 miles east of tahiti. Sep 01, 2014 modem archaeological scientists and engineers try and recreate and decipher the mystery of easter island s moai statues by experimenting with archaic engineering methods and mysterious practices. The easter island foundation was founded in 1989 with the mission of. The book describes the 19551956 norwegian archaeological expeditions investigations of polynesian history and culture at easter island, the austral islands of rapa iti and raivavae, and the marquesas islands of nuku hiva and hiva oa. How societies choose to fail or survive for the british edition is a 2005 book by academic and popular science author jared diamond, in which the author first defines collapse. There is also a small thread of a german world war i naval squadron present in the book. About half of the inhabitants are of polynesian stock. Despite its extremely remote location, the island has been inhabited for around 1500 years and has a rich and intriguing history. The author tells the full history of rongorongos exciting discovery and the many attempts at a decipherment.
How societies choose to fail or succeed titled collapse. Island at the end of the world the turbulent history of. Sep 14, 2017 the book references and analyzes most scientific theories around easter island and is a comprehensive analysis for anyone interested in easter island. Geologically one of the youngest inhabited territories on earth, easter island, located in the midpacific ocean, was, for most of its history, one of the most isolated. Far out in the southeastern part of the pacific ocean lies one of the worlds most remote islands. The natives were fenced in around guarded borders in the area that today is the town of hanga roa to prevent sheep theft. A new green history of the world 2007 is the new and improved version of a green history of the world 1991, which was translated into languages. The ancient history encyclopedia logo is a registered eu trademark. This guidebook includes the islands history, culture and all of its significant archaeological sites. Tradition holds that the first people arrived from the marquesa islands around 300400 a.
Jan 21, 2011 easter island, an isosceles triangle of volcanic rock in the pacific ocean, is two thousand miles from both tahiti and chile and one of the most isolated places on earth. China was also a foreground for what would eventually become the book. Easter island remains one of the most mysterious places in the world. Katherine routledge is a central figure in the history of easter island, one of the worlds most remote and mysterious locales. In fact, the words biblos and liber first meant fibre inside a tree.
List of books and articles about easter island online research. Katherine routeledge visits for a yearlong expedition to the island. Easter island is often given as a metaphor, a dire warning for all of human life on our planet. Elsa beazley arrives at easter island in 1916 with her new husband and her mentally handicapped sister. Explore fascinating mysteries and secrets of history and.
Easter island history the island itself many people have found easter island history very fascinating. It is the easternmost outpost of the polynesian island world. It lies in the pacific ocean more than 2,000 miles west of the nearest. In 1995, unesco named easter island a world heritage site. A brief history of easter islands incredible moai statues. Steven roger fischer offers the first englishlanguage history of easter island in island at the end of the world. British historian clive ponting did a fantastic amount of research, and then refined it into a very readable, mindaltering 400page book a silver bullet cure for folks suffering from denial. Im so glad i decided to read it because its just a great book full of interesting information, some of which id never come across before, and such a. Other scientists who work on the island also remain skeptical of hunts later colonization date of 1200 a. On easter sunday, april 5, 1722, a dutch sea captain named jacob roggeveen landed his ship on an island known as te pito o te henua, meaning the center of the world. Score a book s total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book. My selfguided tour plan leads me to another question. Easter island also has a huge crater called rano kau at the edge of the island. In chinese, the charactersymbol that means book is an image of a bamboo tablet.
The first king of rapa nui was hoto matua, who landed at anakena beach. Reading guide for easter island by jennifer vanderbes. Easter island, also known as rapa nui, is a tiny island in the pacific ocean, thousands of kilometers away from its nearest neighbors. Migrations and settlements, the evolution of a culture, wars between tribes, and ultimate decimation of a whole population define the course of easter island history. Its inhabitants, the rapa nui, have endured famines, epidemics of disease and cannibalism, civil war, environmental collapse, slave raids, various colonial contacts, and have seen their population crash on more than one occasion. In easter island dna, evidence of genetic loneliness the. Easter island comprehensively covers the facts, mysteries, and theories surrounding the islands inhabitants and their famous creations. Easter island has captivated the worlds imagination since its discovery in 1722. You fly right over the island and make a turn southeast across the ocean to finally land from the west at mataveri international airport, the only airport on easter island.
Im so glad i decided to read it because its just a great book full of interesting information, some of which id never come across before, and such a lovely double story. Publishes the book the mystery of easter island in 1919. Captain roggeveen renamed the island easter island. On a long stretch of green coast in the south pacific, hundreds of enormous, impassive stone heads stand guard against the ravages of time, war, and disease that have attempted over the centuries to conquer easter island.
It is famous for its 887 huge statues called moai, made by the early rapa nui people. I wanted to research easter island for a new fantasy series ive been planning and once i saw there was a female archeologist and adventurer whod written an account i had to get the book. The culture and the mythology of the indigenous easter island people the rapa nui were very unique and diverse, and stood out from other polynesian cultures. Add tags for island at the end of the world the turbulent history of easter island. Easter island simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Early wooden tablets, known as rongorongo, surface even on easter island. Of volcanic origin, easter island is mostly covered with grasslands and is swept by strong trade winds. With the mysteries of easter island, kids can explore questions and mysteries surrounding the huge stone statues of easter island and the culture that produced them. Easter island books includes resources to plan selfguided tours and recommended must reading to understand the history of easter island.
In this extraordinary fiction debutrich with love and betrayal, history and intellectual passiontwo remarkable narratives converge on easter island. Known today as rapa nui, or great rapa to distinguish it from little rapa, or rapa iti, the island s earliest native settlers called it te piti o te henua, or the. Join two intrepid young women as they delve into the centuriesold mysteries of easter island. Easter island is a polynesian island in the southeastern pacific ocean. Much research has been carried out on these famous statues and many of the damaged and fallen statues have since been restored around the island. The characters are flawed but well developed and believable in both eras. It was perfect because not only does it tell you history and legend, but also things you need to know day to day, plus fun stuff like the passport stamp at the post office. Slowly unearthing the islands haunting past, they are forced to confront turbulent discoveries about themselves and the people they love, changing their lives forever. The secrets of easter island history smithsonian magazine. The turbulent history of easter island 9781861892829. First published in 1919, this work provides information on that most mysterious of islands easter island rapa nui. The easter island foundation promoting the conservation and.
Steven roger fischer offers the first englishlanguage history of easter island in island at the end of the world, a fascinating chronicle of adversity, triumph, and the. The events that happened there make it an icon of environmental degradation and collapse. Named easter island by the dutch explorer jacob roggeveen, who first spied it on easter day 1722, this tiny spit of volcanic rock in the vast south seas is, even today, the most remote inhabited. The book is an ideal size and gives plenty of practical information and background. Easter island comprehensively covers the facts, mysteries, and theories surrounding the island s inhabitants and their famous creations. The mysterious stone statues carved and erected by the rapa nui people have enthralled people since their discovery. The questions, discussion topics, and author biography that follow are intended to enhance your reading of jennifer vanderbes easter island. Born to a wealthy and prestigious english quaker family in 1866, katherine rebelled against their strict victorian values, becoming one of the first female graduates of oxford university and the first. Famed for its breathtaking isolation, easter island was a verdant southsea idyll when a small canoeful of polynesians arrived in c ad 700. Easter island is a 2003 historical novel by jennifer vanderbes. Leased to private companies some british influence. Easter island history, polynesia history, books barnes.
Located over 2,000 miles away from chile and south america, the nearest continent, and over 1,300 miles away from its nearest inhabited neighbor, pitcairn island, easter island is a solitary mass of land alone at the southeasternmost point of the polynesian triangle. The essential guidebook to this mysterious and enigmatic island, and the only book about easter island written by someone who actually lives here. I love it when two or more stories come together like this. I learned a lot about the history and peculiarities of this tiny island of the south pacific, the polynesian inheritance, the foreign dominance over the centuries, the struggles and rebirths of the rapanui people, the problems in modern days. Easter island, with an area of only 64 square miles, is the worlds most isolated scrap of habitable land. The moai are some of the worlds most fascinating and widelyrecognised monolithic statues. Easter island has always interested me so ive read a lot of nonfiction books about it. Jo anne van tilburg, founder of the easter island statue project and a scientist at the. Jan, 2010 a 0 year exploration of easter island history.
There is no such flummery in steven fischers new book. This is an absolutely wonderful and vivid account not only of katherine and her husbands work on the island but of their epic journey to get there from. The tiny island is more than a thousand miles from its nearest island neighbor to. For decades, scientists have studied this remote island in the south pacific and its hundreds of giant stone statues known as moai. Rongorongo, easter island s enigmatic script and oceanias only known pretwentiethcentury writing system, is here comprehensively documented for the first time. The story of easter island s statues is extraordinary, but the story of how people came to be there in the first place is just as incredible. The archeological record suggests a somewhat later date of. The spread of european diseases, especially smallpox, and the raids of spanish slavers reduced the population to slightly more than 100 by 1887. Make sure to book a window seat on the lefthand side of the plane on the way there and back for the best views. The mysteries of easter of island is a detailed text that will keep students engaged and leave them with many of their own questions to consider.
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