| Page | |
| FOREWORD | 9 |
| NOTE ON PRONUNCIATION | 16 |
| Traditions, Records, and Geography | 19 |
| Where Did the Polynesians Originate? | 33 |
| Man Comes to Easter Island | 45 |
| Building a New Life | 53 |
| Religious and Social Practices | 63 |
| The Inscribed Tablets | 73 |
| The Death of Hotu Matu'a and the Coming of Other Immigrants | 83 |
| The Outdoor Altars | 97 |
| The Great Statues | 107 |
| The Beginning of the End | 129 |
| Conflicts and Cannibalism | 137 |
| Final Tragedy | 145 |
| APPENDIX I. PEOPLE MENTIONED IN THE TEXT | 163 |
| APPENDIX II. LIST OF ARIKI HENUA | 167 |
| APPENDIX III. PLACES MENTIONED IN THE TEXT | 168 |
| REFERENCE NOTES | 172 |
| GLOSSARY | 176 |
| BIBLIOGRAPHY | 183 |
| INDEX | 187 |
| Two maps | |
| 25 colour photographs | |
| 7 black-and-white photographs |