Traditions and Legends of Easter Island

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Legends and Traditions of Easter Island

translated from Sebastian Englert's Leyendas

Transportation of the Stone Statues
Told by Santiago Pakarati

Penei i-aamu-mai te nuahine era Ko Veri Amo, tupuna o taaku vi'e:     This is what old Veri Amo, my wife's grandmother, told me:

He tagata etahi, Ko Rua Hauá a Pua Taúra toona igoa.     There was a man called Rua Hauá a Pua Taúra.

O te Ariki i-vaai ki a îa te toto'i-haga o te moai ki te kona era, ki te kona era.     The King had given him the [responsibility of] moving the statues to this spot and that spot.

Mo toto'i o te moai ki tai era, ki te ahu o Togariki ana-hakatu'u te pou kiraro ki te pu etahi,     In order to move the statues to the coast, to ahu Tongariki, they stood a tree trunk in a hole,

ko te tu'u te igoa o te pou.     tu'u is how those trunks were called.

He-here hiohio hai taúra; etoru te hereíga mo tarupu.     They fastened it very tightly with ropes; three were the tyings to hold it.

Ki hiohio te tu'u he-here te toga a te vaega, ki rivariva-ai ana hakateka.     Once the tu'u was steady they fastened a transversal pole up its middle, so that they could rotate it easily ^113d

E-ai-ró-á te pu a te vaega o te tu'u mo te taúra here toga.     There was a hole in the middle of the tu'u for the rope tying the transversal pole.

He-here tako'a te taúra etahi ki te potu o te toga,     They also fastend other ropes to the extremity of the transversal pole,

mai ruga mai te potu o te tu'u i-turu-mai-ai mo hakahiohio.     from the upper end of the tu'u down, to make it stable.

He-ketu te moai, he-here hai maari kiruga ki te toga.     They lifted the statue, they fastened it with ropes to the transversal pole.

He-haketeke te toga ka-tu'u-ró te moai ki te maari roaroa turu ki tai era.     They rotated ^113e the pole until the statue reached the very long rope going down to the coast.

He-here te moai kiruga te maari roaroa, e-aga te kavei mo hakapororeko mo hakaturu kiraro nui era.     They fastend the statue to the top [of] the long rope, making bow-knots (lazadas) to make it slide all the way down.

O Rua Hauá etahí toona tagata te eke-aga iruga i te tu'u mo here i te moai kiruga ki te toga. Ko Pane kai-roro toona igoa.     Rua Hauá had a man [whose job it was to] climb up on the tu'u to fasten the statue onto the transversal pole. Pane Kai Roro was his name.

I te tahi raá, he-here te maari kiruga ki te moai, Ko Rahi te igoa; moai moúga mo to'o.     One day, he fastend the ropes onto a statue called Rahi; [it was the] last statue to be taken [out of the volcano].

He-haro kiruga ki te maari ka-tu'u-ró ki te ahu o Togariki.     He pulled it up the ropes until it reaches ahu Tongariki.

I-turu-era aruga a te maari, he-hati-mai te gao o te moai,     As it came down on the ropes, the neck of the statue broke,

he-viri kiraro tako'a a Pane Kai-Roro;     Pane Kai Roro also came rolling down;

he-gaaha toona puoko, he-marerere te roro.     his head burst open, his brains spilt.

He-nape te igoa o tau kona era: "Ko Pane Kai Roro".     They called this spot "Ko Pane Kai Roro".

He-noho Rua Hauá a Pua Taúra.     Rua Hauá a Pua Taúra lived on.^113f

Ki tu'u ki toona ta'u, he-mate.     When his time came he died.

He-to'o-mai, he-muraki iroto i te pu maari era e-here-era i te taúra.     They carried [him], they buried [him] inside the rope hole where they used to fasten the ropes.

We include this tale although it seems improbable that the ancients may have used such a sort of cable ferry (andarivel) to transport such heavy statues; if they did use it, it must have been on rare occasions and only for statues carved near pu maari holes. It is however probable that this cable ferry was used for the popular sport described in the chapter "deporte del maari" (page 189). At the summit of the Rano Raraku crater there are seven holes cut in the rock in a perfectly circular shape, one metre and a half deep and one metre wide. One of them is on the circumference of the crater itself, the other six nearby, a little lower down. They actually form three holes, as an opening, a sort of tunnel, connects one of each pair with the other, to allow a rope to go through and yields the ropes greater steadiness. As for the grave of Rua Hauá a Pua Taúra, that is a true fact, as in 1957 the ethnologist Dr Thomas Barthel found in one of the holes the skeleton mentioned by the tradition.

Note 113d Hakateka is not found in the dictionary, nor is teka, of which it would be the factitive, but Englert's translation (así que le pudiesen girar) reveals its meaning as "to rotate". Hakateka is perhaps a misprint for hakataka which Englert gives as meaning "redondear".

Note 113e Note the probable misprint: haketeke for hakateka or perhaps hakataka.

Note 113f Englert translates: "quedó en su lugar".

Transportation of the Stone Statues
		Told by Santiago Pakarati
Penei i-aamu-mai te nuahine era Ko Veri Amo, tupuna o taaku vi'e:		This is what old Veri Amo, my wife's grandmother, told me:
He tagata etahi, Ko Rua Hauá a Pua Taúra toona igoa.		There was a man called Rua Hauá a Pua Taúra.
O te Ariki i-vaai ki a îa te toto'i-haga o te moai ki te kona era, ki te kona era.		The King had given him the [responsibility of] moving the statues to this spot and that spot.
Mo toto'i o te moai ki tai era, ki te ahu o Togariki ana-hakatu'u te pou kiraro ki te pu etahi,		In order to move the statues to the coast, to ahu Tongariki, they stood a tree trunk in a hole,
ko te tu'u te igoa o te pou.		tu'u is how those trunks were called.
He-here hiohio hai taúra; etoru te hereíga mo tarupu.		They fastened it very tightly with ropes; three were the tyings to hold it.
Ki hiohio te tu'u he-here te toga a te vaega, ki rivariva-ai ana hakateka.		Once the tu'u was steady they fastened a transversal pole up its middle, so that they could rotate it easily ^113d
E-ai-ró-á te pu a te vaega o te tu'u mo te taúra here toga.		There was a hole in the middle of the tu'u for the rope tying the transversal pole.
He-here tako'a te taúra etahi ki te potu o te toga,		They also fastend other ropes to the extremity of the transversal pole,
mai ruga mai te potu o te tu'u i-turu-mai-ai mo hakahiohio.		from the upper end of the tu'u down, to make it stable.
He-ketu te moai, he-here hai maari kiruga ki te toga.		They lifted the statue, they fastened it with ropes to the transversal pole.
He-haketeke te toga ka-tu'u-ró te moai ki te maari roaroa turu ki tai era.		They rotated ^113e the pole until the statue reached the very long rope going down to the coast.
He-here te moai kiruga te maari roaroa, e-aga te kavei mo hakapororeko mo hakaturu kiraro nui era.		They fastend the statue to the top [of] the long rope, making bow-knots (lazadas) to make it slide all the way down.
O Rua Hauá etahí toona tagata te eke-aga iruga i te tu'u mo here i te moai kiruga ki te toga. Ko Pane kai-roro toona igoa.		Rua Hauá had a man [whose job it was to] climb up on the tu'u to fasten the statue onto the transversal pole. Pane Kai Roro was his name.
I te tahi raá, he-here te maari kiruga ki te moai, Ko Rahi te igoa; moai moúga mo to'o.		One day, he fastend the ropes onto a statue called Rahi; [it was the] last statue to be taken [out of the volcano].
He-haro kiruga ki te maari ka-tu'u-ró ki te ahu o Togariki.		He pulled it up the ropes until it reaches ahu Tongariki.
I-turu-era aruga a te maari, he-hati-mai te gao o te moai,		As it came down on the ropes, the neck of the statue broke,
he-viri kiraro tako'a a Pane Kai-Roro;		Pane Kai Roro also came rolling down;
he-gaaha toona puoko, he-marerere te roro.		his head burst open, his brains spilt.
He-nape te igoa o tau kona era: "Ko Pane Kai Roro".		They called this spot "Ko Pane Kai Roro".
He-noho Rua Hauá a Pua Taúra.		Rua Hauá a Pua Taúra lived on.^113f
Ki tu'u ki toona ta'u, he-mate.		When his time came he died.
He-to'o-mai, he-muraki iroto i te pu maari era e-here-era i te taúra.		They carried [him], they buried [him] inside the rope hole where they used to fasten the ropes.
We include this tale although it seems improbable that the ancients may have used such a sort of cable ferry (andarivel) to transport such heavy statues; if they did use it, it must have been on rare occasions and only for statues carved near pu maari holes. It is however probable that this cable ferry was used for the popular sport described in the chapter "deporte del maari" (page 189). At the summit of the Rano Raraku crater there are seven holes cut in the rock in a perfectly circular shape, one metre and a half deep and one metre wide. One of them is on the circumference of the crater itself, the other six nearby, a little lower down. They actually form three holes, as an opening, a sort of tunnel, connects one of each pair with the other, to allow a rope to go through and yields the ropes greater steadiness. As for the grave of Rua Hauá a Pua Taúra, that is a true fact, as in 1957 the ethnologist Dr Thomas Barthel found in one of the holes the skeleton mentioned by the tradition.