Moai is the name given to the monumental stone statues of Rapa Nui.
The moai were carved by the Polynesian people of Rapa Nui, commonly known as Easter Island. Most were made from volcanic tuff quarried at Rano Raraku between about 1250 and 1500. The statues generally represent deified ancestors or important chiefs and were placed on ceremonial platforms called ahu.
Moai are famous for their large heads, but their bodies extend below the shoulders; some buried statues have substantial torsos. Many wore red-scoria topknots called pukao, quarried at a separate site. Oral traditions and experimental archaeology suggest that islanders may have moved some statues upright by “walking” them with ropes.
Rapa Nui lies in the southeastern Pacific Ocean and is politically part of Chile. The statues are not called Easter Island heads, a popular but inaccurate nickname that ignores their bodies and cultural meaning.