262 



NATURE 



[May 25, 1916 



Southampton to Chile •yiA the Straits of Magel- 

 lan, and thence to its destination. The party con- 

 sisted of Mr. and Mrs. Routledge, Lieutenant 

 R. D. Ritchie (seconded by the Admiralty for navi- 

 gation and survey work), and Mr. F. Lowry Corry, 

 geologist. The last-mentioned gentleman had un- 

 fortunately to be left behind in South America 

 owing to a severe attack of typhoid fever which 

 necessitated his subsequent return to England. 

 The expedition arrived at the island on March 29, 

 1914, and did not leave until August, 1915, making 

 a stay of sixteen and a half months. 



Easter Island, or Rapa Nui, the most easterly 

 island of the Polynesian group, lying about 11 

 miles south-east of Pitcairn, was discovered in 

 172 1 by a Dutch captain named Roggewein. It 

 was visited on several occasions subsequently by 

 navigators, notably by H.M.S. Topaze in 1868. 

 Our knowledge of the history and antiquities of the 

 island is based largely on the results of a visit of 

 twelve days' duration made by the Mohican, of the 

 United States Navy, in 1886. 



The islanders speak a dialect of Polynesian, and 

 in physical character they conform to the Poly- 

 nesian type. At the present day their numbers are 

 small, owing to the fact that in 1862 or 1863 about 

 half of the population was carried off by Chilian 

 slave raiders, and a large number of the remainder 

 were transferred to Tahiti, Eimeo, and Gambler 

 by various agencies. Considerable modification in 

 their customs would appear to have taken place 

 after the Chilian raid; the chiefs upon whom their 

 social organisation was based disappeared, and 

 many of their ancient customs fell into desuetude, 

 though the tradition was preserved among the 

 older members of the community. From this tradi- 

 tion and from the references in the accounts of the 

 older voyagers, it would appear that in religion, 

 culture, and social organisation the Easter Is- 

 landers were broadly Polynesian. During their 

 stay on the island the members of the Routledge 

 expedition were able to get into intimate relation 

 with those islanders who still have some know- 

 ledge of the. older tradition. The result has been 

 a fund of information of quite unhoped-for interest 

 and importance, especially in its relation to the 

 archaeological remains of the island, which have 

 always been something of a puzzle. 



The chief interest of Easter Island lies in the 

 fact that it possesses remains which, although not 

 exactly unique, are yet sufficiently remarkable to 

 have given rise to considerable speculation. These 

 consist of stone terraces, or platforms, resembling 

 the Polynesian marais ; colossal monolithic statues, 

 stone carvings, and stone-built houses. Further, 

 Easter Island is the only part of Polynesia in which 

 anything approaching a script was developed. 

 About fifteen inscribed wooden tablets from the 

 island are known to exist, one being in the British 

 Museum.^ 



The stone terraces or platforms have been care- 

 fully examined and measured by the Routledge 



1 The tablet's^ are described and the attempts at their interpretation sum- 

 marised and discussed by Mr. O. M. Dalton. " On an inscribed wooden 

 tablet from Easter Island (Rapa Nui) in the British Museum." Man. Lon- 

 don, 1904. No. I. 



NO. 2430, VOL. 97] 



expedition, and the number known to exist has 

 now been considerably increased. These platforms 

 are remarkable both for their size — one of them is 

 150 feet long, or with the wings which run from 

 the upper level to the ground, 560 feet long — and 

 for the method of their structure. They were built 

 by filling in with stone rubble the space between 

 parallel walls of squared uncemented stone. On 

 the top of the platforms stood the stone statues. 

 These statues, of which there are two examples in 

 the British Museum, are of enormous size, weigh- 

 ing from 10 to 40 tons. Many of them lie where 

 they were made in the crater, and a large number 

 still stand on the slopes of Rana Roraku, one of 

 the volcanic craters which form the chief physical 

 features of the island. Dr. Rivers has recently 

 directed attention to the fact that Moerenhout in 

 1837 pointed out that similar, though smaller, 

 statues existed in Pitcairn and Laivaivai, while 

 he himself suggests a connection with the cults and 

 secret societies of Melanesia.^ None of the statues 

 on the platforms are now standing, and their 

 manufacture appears to have ceased abruptly. One 

 explanation of the cessation which has been offered 

 is that it was due to a volcanic disturbance, while 

 a native legend states that the statues were thrown 

 down in an intertribal quarrel. The Routledge 

 expedition made a number of excavations around 

 the statues in the hope that light might be ob- 

 tained on this point, and the methods of manufac- 

 ture were carefully investigated. Particular atten- 

 tion was given to the question of orientation, but 

 no uniformity was observed. On the coast the 

 statues on the platforms faced inland, while the 

 platforms themselves faced in all directions. 

 Those erected on the mountain followed the nature 

 of the ground. Inside the crater they faced north 

 and east ; on the outer slope south-west. The 

 stone-built houses were also subjected to a close 

 examination, and much new information obtained 

 as to them. It could scarcely be expected that at 

 this late date, especially having in view the results 

 of earlier inquiries, an interpretation of the 

 tablets could be obtained ; but a certain amount of 

 information of value has been acquired. 



The expedition, on leaving Easter Island, visited 

 Pitcairn Island (where a stav of four days was 

 made), Tahiti, and the Sandwich Islands, in all of 

 which material valuable for comparative purposes 

 was obtained. 



It would be premature and unfair, while the data 

 of the expedition are still under examination, to do 

 more than indicate in the briefest manner the 

 points to which attention has been directed. 

 Enough has been stated, however, to suggest the 

 value of the expedition's work, which it may safely 

 be said will not only add considerably to our know- 

 ledge of the island itself, but will have important 

 bearing upon more general questions relating to 

 the culture of the Pacific. It is hoped that it will 

 be possible for a full account of the expedition to 

 be given at the forthcoming meeting of the British 



Association at Newcastle. ^ ^_ _ 



E. N. Fallaize. 



2 W. H. R. Rivers, "Sun Cult and Megaliths in Oceania.' American- 

 /^«Mro/o/«'.f»j/, New Series, 17, 1915. 442 fol. 



