Three wooden ancestor figures (moai kavakava)

These three figures represent and embody ancestral spirits of the Easter Islanders. They would be kept by various people and brought out for ceremonies such as harvest time, when they might be worn by a dancer in order to communicate with the ancestors.

The figures are carved from single pieces of wood. Two are male (one emaciated, the other not) and one shown bending back is of uncertain sex, possibly female. All have staring eyes. One man's are painted red and black, the other's yellow and black.

These ancestral figures (moai kavakava) were regularly used until Easter Island was Christianised in 1868. After that, some were made for sale to visitors. As spirits of the long-dead - some shown like thin corpses - they had played a key role in beliefs.

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• Online ID: 000-180-000-751-C
• Image Rights Holder: National Museums Scotland
• Project: National Museums Scotland Part 2
  Project description   View all records in project
• Ref: National Museums Scotland  
• Date: 19th and 20th century
  
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  • Orliac, C and M, 1995. Bois Sculptes de l'Ile de Paques. Marseille: Editions Parentheses 
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