Study Suggests Moai Statues Were ‘Walked’ to Their Platforms

Sports October 27, 2025 0 Comments

Study Suggests Moai Statues Were ‘Walked’ to Their Platforms

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the Beautiful statues On Rapa Nui, or Easter Island, the island has long been shrouded in mystery. Of all the questions that have puzzled archaeologists since the discovery of these huge monoliths, the biggest have to do with their location and size. Since each one weighs several tons, how were they transported and placed on their platforms? A New study Published in Journal of Archaeological Sciences Looks like she finally has an answer.

Moai are found primarily along the perimeter of the island. Believed to have been carved in the inland Rano Raraku quarry, the statues were later moved to stone platforms near coastal areas. There, they are often placed next to each other, facing the interior of the island like immortal protectors. Although the quarry is located less than a mile from the coast, moving moai with limited resources can be a complex endeavor.

Archaeologists Carl LeBow of Binghamton University and Terry Hunt of the University of Arizona analyzed the 962 moai. They focused in particular on 62 megalithic boulders that appeared to be abandoned between the quarry and its final destination. Compared to those who reached their is it, Or the pallets, had signs of damage caused by mechanical processes, rather than being placed there intentionally.

Taking a look at Rapa Nui oral traditions describing the Moai “walking” from the quarry, they set out to discover what that would have looked like. It is believed that they were moved with ropes, and the people transporting them used coordinated side-to-side movements to push each monolith.

A key element of this work is the inclination and center of mass of each moai, as well as their D-shaped bases. The rounded portion served as a pivot point, while the slight slope of the megalith—between six and 15 degrees—moved the center of mass around the leading edge of the base. When tilted to the side, the statue falls forward, and is held back by two motors that grip carefully placed ropes, creating a rocking motion that makes the statue “walk.” Once in place, they were sculpted to remove the portion that produced the slope, resulting in greater stability.

To confirm their hypothesis, the scientists used a replica of a moai weighing 4.79 US tons. With the help of a team of 18 volunteers — four on the left rope, four on the right rope, and 10 on the back rope — they were able to move the moai 328 feet in 40 minutes. However, the Rapa Nui population could have been moved by fewer people over a longer period of time.

Lipow and Hunt’s research suggests that the people of Rapa Nui had a sophisticated understanding of physics, especially the principles of resonance. Furthermore, it also proves that they worked wonders with a relatively small population and challenges the theory that they were responsible for their own demise by overpopulating and causing deforestation on the island; It’s something people believed in because of the huge amount of work needed to produce and transport hundreds of statues.

“Dr Dylan Davis said: “Studies of the moai themselves suggest they could have been built and transported by a small population.” The Guardian. “It just took cooperation.”