Project updates and links to related information
The Secrets of Easter Island
The more we learn about the remote island from archaeologists and researchers, the more intriguing it becomes
By Paul Trachtman
Smithsonian magazine, March 2002
Upcoming lectures by Dr. Van Tilburg
Dr. Jo Anne Van Tilburg will be giving the following lectures at the AIA and University of Pennsylvania in the coming year. Topics include Site Preservation Practices as well as a general overview of the Easter Island Statue Project.
January 7th, 2010
Workshop: Lessons from the Field: Pursuing Best Practices in Site Preservation
111th AIA and APA Joint Annual Meeting
Anaheim, California
Dr. Van Tilburg will discuss methods used in preserving the moai on Easter Island.
May 5th, 2010
Great Archaeological Discoveries: The Easter Island Statue Project
University of Pennsylvania Museum of Anthropology and Archaeology
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Dr. Van Tilburg will give an overview of the project.
AIA Workshop Proposal Annual Meeting 2010
6-9 January 2010 Anaheim, California
Click here to go to the AIA website for more information
Feature in Archaeology Magazine
The laser scanning of Hoa Hakananai’a is featured in the cover story of Archaeology, May/June 2009 issue. Read the full text on the magazine website.
Easter Island: Archaeology, Ecology, and Culture
by Jo Anne Van Tilburg
Foreword by John Mack
Hardcover, 232 pages
30 color and 124 B&W illustrations
Smithsonian Press (October 1995)
Order a signed copy from EISP: $25
Since Easter Island (Rapa Nui) was first “discovered” nearly 300 years ago, its people, culture and monolithic statues have been seen as an unsolvable riddle. At the heart of the so-called mystery stand the gigantic moai. How were they moved? What do they mean? Over more than twelve years, nearly 1000 statues have been measured, drawn and photgraphed by Jo Anne Van Tilburg and a team of colleagues. In this ground-breaking title, the author draws on the insights that have been gained, to examine Rapa Nui prehistory in the context of new understandings of ecology and culture.