Easter Island group heads to London for statue return

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A delegation from Easter Island will arrive in London next week to seek the return from the British Museum of one of the native Polynesians' emblematic statues.

The 2.13-meter tall "Hoa Hakananai'a" basalt figure, meaning "lost or stolen friend" in the local language, was among 900 statues or "Moai," meaning "ancestors," carved by islanders between 1100 and 1600 AD.

The Hoa Hakananai'a was taken from the island, located 3,990 kilometers west of the Chilean capital Santiago, in 1868 by Richard Powell, the captain of HMS Topaze, and presented to Queen Victoria who passed it on to the British Museum.

A large stone statue, or Moai, from Easter Island, on display at the British Museum, London /VCG Photo

The statue is one of many artifacts British explorers and dignitaries acquired from around the globe that are displayed in the British Museum.

But a number of these treasures have become the subject of intense debate and requests for their return by their countries of origin, including Grecian antique sculptures known as the Elgin Marbles and the Benin Bronzes from modern-day Nigeria.

The delegation will offer to swap the Hoa Hakananai'a for another Moai carved from stone by the contemporary local sculptor Bene Tuki.

"The best place for this Moai is where it was created," Felipe Ward, Chile's heritage minister told Reuters in an interview in Santiago this week, noting he had "a glimmer of hope because they are willing to discuss it."

Ward, who will accompany the delegation to the meeting in London on Tuesday, said that Rapa Nui is an open-air museum, so the conditions for protecting Moai are perfect.

Easter Island Statues circa 1983 in Chile /VCG Photo

A spokesman for the British Museum told Reuters they were always willing to consider loaning out objects from their collection "subject to the usual conditions."

The spokesman noted that they believe there is great value in presenting objects from across the world, alongside the stories of other cultures at the British Museum.

"Hoa Hakananai'a is free to view and is among the most popular and most photographed exhibits with our six million visitors each year,” the spokesman added.

Source(s): Reuters