Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui, is a Polynesian island and special territory of Chile, in the southeastern Pacific Ocean and a fascinating add-on to a Chile vacation.
There is much speculation about when people first arrived, but recent studies suggest it was around 800 AD. The first Europeans to descend on the island were led by Dutch Admiral Jacob Roggeveen on Easter Sunday, 1722. Rapa Nui was claimed by the Spanish in 1770 and further contact with outsiders proved disastrous for the islanders. They were used as slaves for projects as far away as Australia and Peru and those that returned to the island brought epidemics that nearly wiped out the population.
Chile officially annexed the island in 1888 and has remained in control ever since. However, recent years have witnessed a movement by the islanders to have a greater say in the governing of the land.
Easter Island is perhaps best known for the Moai, monolithic statues that dot the landscape and were carved during 1100-1680 AD from volcanic ash rocks from the Rano Raraku crater. A total of 887 Moai have been discovered and it is believed that they were created in honour of sacred ancestors who watch over the villages Rano Raraku
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