The Statues That Walked: Solving the Mysteries of Rapa Nui (Easter Island)
Lecture Recording | Fall 2025
Step into one of the world’s greatest archaeological mysteries. In this lecture, Professor Terry Hunt reveals how the moai of Rapa Nui “walked” across the island—and how decades of research transformed what we thought we knew about Easter Island.
On a remote island in the Pacific, nearly a thousand giant statues stand watch. For centuries, their presence on Rapa Nui (Easter Island) has stirred wonder and sparked debate: how did a small community, without wheels or draft animals, move such massive stone figures across miles of rugged terrain?
In this special Humanities Seminars Program lecture, Professor Terry Hunt takes us inside more than twenty years of fieldwork, experiments, and discovery. With clarity and enthusiasm, he guides us through the quarry where most moai were carved, the roads they once traveled, and the clues left behind in the island’s landscape.
Hunt and his team asked a question long at the heart of Rapa Nui’s mystery: did the statues truly “walk”? Oral traditions used the phrase neke ne—“walking with no legs.” Experiments with replica statues, combined with detailed measurements of the originals, eventually revealed the answer. The secret was not brute force, but balance, control, and clever teamwork. Along the way, Hunt addresses earlier theories of sleds and rollers, explains why the volcanic tuff of the moai mattered for their movement, and situates the statues within the broader history of Rapa Nui’s people—their ingenuity, their ceremonial sites, their challenges with limited resources, and the resilience carried forward in their traditions.
The lecture closes with a lively Q&A, where Hunt reflects on what genetic studies, ecological evidence, and archaeological data reveal about the island’s colonization, environment, and cultural legacy. What emerges is not just a tale of mystery solved, but of a people whose achievements still astonish the world.
Why Watch?
This recording allows you to step back into the lecture hall and follow the unfolding story at your own pace. Hear directly from one of the scholars who helped rewrite the history of Rapa Nui. Watch as a centuries-old riddle gives way to evidence, experiment, and insight.
About Professor Terry Hunt
Professor Terry Hunt, School of Anthropology at the University of Arizona, is internationally recognized for his research on Rapa Nui. His work has been featured in National Geographic and NOVA documentaries, including The Origins of Easter Island. He is co-author of the award-winning book The Statues That Walked.
Keep Your Journey Going
The mystery of Rapa Nui reminds us that discovery is never finished. There is always another idea to test, another story to uncover, another world to explore.
Never Stop Exploring—Enroll today for your next learning adventure with HSP
Support the Humanities Seminars Program
If you found inspiration in this lecture, you are not alone. For more than 40 years, the Humanities Seminars Program has brought world-class scholars and curious minds together to explore big ideas, share meaningful conversations, and keep lifelong learning alive.
Programs like The Statues That Walked are made possible thanks to the generosity of those who believe in the power of discovery. With your support, HSP can continue to offer engaging lectures, hybrid access for learners everywhere, and the kind of unique intellectual community that so many of us treasure.
Your gift ensures that the joy of learning endures—for you, for your peers, and for future generations.
Make a Gift Today
If you prefer to mail in a check, please make your check out to UAF – Humanities Seminars Operations and mail it to:
Humanities Seminars Program
Attn: Micah Lunsford
PO Box 210150
Tucson, AZ 85721-0150
“The high quality of professors is astounding. My life would not be the same without the stimulation of these classes!”