Researchers have found a new moai statue in a dry lakebed on the Chilean island of Rapa Nui, joining nearly 1,000 other iconic monolithic statues on what is known internationally as Easter Island.
The statue is relatively small at 1.6 m (5.2 ft), compared to some other elaborately painted heads and torsos that reach up to 22 m (72 ft). It was found by researchers from the University of Chile and O’Higgins University.
More statues may be found in the dry lakebed at the center of Rano Raraku volcanic crater, said Salvador Atan Hito, vice president of the Maui Henua indigenous community, which manages Rapa Nui’s archaeological treasures.
The statue is in “good condition,” Atan told The Associated Press in an interview Wednesday, “it has been battered by time, erosion, and water, but its shape and features are still very noticeable.”
“This discovery is something historic for this new generation,” he said.
Of the island’s 1,000 moai, about 400 are inside the volcanic crater or on its outer slopes, and the rest are scattered over the rest of the island’s 160 square kilometers (60 sq mi).
Some moai are known to be buried below the surface, although they have been left in place. However, this latest one was not listed before, Atan said.
The figures represent the ancestors of the Rapa Nui community, and their role is to protect community members, which is why they were placed facing inward from the sea, Atan said.
Rapa Nui, located 3,700 kilometers (2,300 mi) from the mainland, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995. In 2019, it was renamed “Rapa Nui-Easter Island” from the previous name of Easter Island.