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Easter Island: Early Witnesses

William Thomson


495

to the platforms. Many of the images in the workshops are of huge proportions, but the largest one on the island lies on one of the central terraces in an unfinished condition and measures 70 feet in length, 14½ feet across the body; the head being 28½ feet long. Some of the standing statues are in as perfect condition as the day they were finished. One (Fig. 15) is noticeable from the fact that the head is slightly turned to one side and is known as the "wry-neck," but whether it is the result of accident or design could not be determined.

294x556 GIF, 13.6k 290x557 GIF, 10.8k
FIG. 15.
"
WRY-NECK" IMAGE, RANA RORAKA
FIG. 16.
THE MUTILATED IMAGE "HIARA," OUTSIDE OF CRATER OF RANA RORAKA

   Another excellent specimen (Fig. 16) of these remarkable figures stands near the last mentioned and shows tool-marks around the neck as though an effort had been made to cut the head off. The natives call this "hiara" and have a tradition to the effect that it belonged to a powerful clan who were finally defeated in war, and that their enemies had made an attempt to destroy the statue by cutting of the head. The story may be based only upon the mutilation, but the chances are that it is founded upon fact.
   Nothing of importance was found by digging about the images or in the workshops except broken stone implements which had been used by the builders. In one of the quarries we found the only trace of sculptured figures in the vicinity. These emblems were carved upon a smooth rock over a half-finished image.

495


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