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Easter Island's Monumental Stone Heads Also Have Detailed Bodies Hidden Beneath The Earth

June 8, 2015

Easter Island is a Chilean island in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, famous for its monumental statues, called "Moai."

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Although the stone heads are well-known, many people are unaware that the sculptures have secretly had torsos, buried beneath the earth.

Credit: Easter Island Statue Project

"The reason people think they are [only] heads is there are about 150 statues buried up to the shoulders on the slope of a volcano, and these are the most famous, most beautiful and most photographed of all the Easter Island statues," Van Tilburg, who is also a fellow at the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology at the University of California, Los Angeles, told Life's Little Mysteries. "This suggested to people who had not seen photos of [other unearthed statues on the island] that they are heads only."

Credit: Easter Island Statue Project

Archaeologists have actually known about the bodies since research began over a century ago in 1914.

Credit: Easter Island Statue Project

The detail on the bodies still remains somewhat of a mystery...

Credit: Easter Island Statue Project

Credit: Easter Island Statue Project

Credit: Easter Island Statue Project