An astonishing sight met the eyes of the Europeans who first explored Easter Island – hundreds of gigantic stone figures with oversized heads. They remain a mystery. They may represent respected ancestors, or important nobles. These figures are called moai. Originally, more than 1000 moai stood on Easter Island. Only 638 remain today. Easter Island is a Southeast Pacific island. The Rapa Nui culture made the moai. However, by the time the Europeans first set foot on Easter Island, the Rapa Nui culture had died out mysteriously.
The tribes of Rapa Nui had a language in pictures called Rongorongo.
Carved on the steep slope of the volcano Rano Kau is the birdman. The bird man has characters of both man and the frigate bird. The birdman cult became important only in the later years of the island history. Make-Make was the creator god of the birdman cult. The younger men of the birdman cult took part in a competition every year. They plunged from the cliffs, and swam to the rocky island of Motu Nui to fetch the egg of a sooty tern. The one who returned first with an unbroken egg became birdman for a year.