Hoa Hakananai’a, the British Museum’s basalt moai, carries birdman figures on its back. They are commonly associated with Makemake and Rapa Nui’s tangata manu, or Birdman, cult. The video argues that some back carvings were added later, in stages over centuries, and places this work after about 1400. The cult’s precise origin date remains debated.
Video links some Moai back carvings to Rapa Nui’s Birdman cult
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Key facts
- The British Museum’s Hoa Hakananai’a is carved from basalt and has birdman figures on its back.
- The figures are popularly interpreted as Makemake, chief god of the Birdman cult. The cult is known as tangata manu, not “Rapanui.”
- The video argues that some back carvings were added after the statue was made, in separate episodes over centuries, and places the later work after about 1400.
- The Birdman cult’s precise origin date remains debated; the cited results do not establish a firm post-1400 date for all back carvings.
- The cited results do not substantiate the claim about four inverted-V vulva symbols on the statue’s right ear.
- Basalt preserves carving detail better than the more easily eroded tuff used for many moai.
Sources
thehistoryblog.com
Linked in video description
bradshawfoundation.com
Linked in video description
eisp.org
Linked in video description
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