Archaeologists and Professors of Anthropology Carl Lipo and Terry Hunt Discuss NOVA Documentary "The Statues that Walked"

Archaeologists and professors of anthropology Carl Lipo (CSULB) and Terry Hunt (University of Hawaii at Manoa) have dedicated the past 10 years to studying Easter Island culture. Their research includes how the native Polynesian inhabitants of Easter Island, or Rapanui, walked the multi-ton statues known as moai from inland rock quarries to coastal platforms. On October 30th, 2012, Lipo and Hunt gave a presentation on the research detailed in their book The Statues that Walked: The Mystery of Easter Island (Free Press, 2011). In addition, they shared and discussed an excerpt from the PBS NOVA/National Geographic television documentary that aired their research to a national public audience on November 7th, 2012 on PBS SoCaL. Their documentary demonstrates that as few as 18 people could maneuver a 10-foot, 5-ton moai replica a few hundred yards, and it served as the cover story in July’s National Geographic magazine.

L-R: Dean David Wallace, Carl Lipo, and Terry Hunt