Chile Attractions

Venue: Easter Island    When: Daily

Easter Island is one of the world's most famous, but least visited, archaeological sites - a small, hilly, now treeless island of volcanic origin, adorned with scores of strange statues.

It is now recognised that the original inhabitants of Easter Island - or Rapa Nui as it is known - were from Polynesia and that they arrived around AD 380 to AD 400 when the island was rich with forest and teeming with birds. The population grew rapidly as resources were plentiful and a rich religious and artistic culture developed.

By the 15th century however, the forests had been cut down, the ground cover had been eroded, the springs had dried up and the birds had disappeared. First famine, then cannibalism, set in. Because the island could no longer feed those who kept the complex society running, chaos resulted.

On Easter Day in 1722, amidst the chaos, a Dutch admiral arrived. He was the first to note the scores of enormous stone statues - moai - scattered around the island. Nearly all are carved from the tough stone of the Rano Raraku volcano. The average is about 15 feet tall and weighs 14 tons - some are a great deal larger.

It seems that between 50 and 150 people were needed to drag these structures across the countryside on sleds and rollers made from the island's trees. Most were carved and erected between AD 1000 and AD 1500. While many were toppled during the clan wars of the 17th and 18th centuries, other statues fell over and cracked while being transported across the island.

Scholars are unable to definitively explain the statues, although plenty of theories abound. You don't need to understand why they are there to appreciate their presence and they are regarded as a spiritual site as much as a tourist attraction.

The island sits in the Pacific Ocean at 27 degrees south of the equator, some 2200 miles (3600 kilometres) off the coast of Chile. Although annexed by Chile, it still retains a rich Polynesian feel and the fascinating culture can still be explored today.

A great time to arrange a trip is late January to early February, when the islanders celebrate Tapati, a festival honouring their Polynesian cultural heritage.