The Australian Museum returns remains of Rapa Nui ancestors to Easter Island

In 1882, a German naval expedition led by Captain Wilhelm Geiseler led the removal of human remains and objects from Easter Island, which was known as Rapa Nui until 1888. The Australian Museum in Sydney purchased 17 skulls and one sample of human hair from the island the following year. For the Rapa Nui people, these remains are their ancestors, and each bone will return to its original resting place at the ahu, ceremonial platforms where moai, the island's megalithic statues, were later placed.

Carlos Edmunds Paoa, president of the Council of the Elders of Rapa Nui, stated that the bone extraction occurred during a time when museums, universities, and private collectors competed to acquire remains from distant lands. The museum's director, Kim McKay, apologized for the circumstances surrounding the collection, expressing deep regret for the past wrong.

The Australian Museum, the country's oldest museum founded in 1827, worked closely with the Rapa Nui community during the restitution process. The remains arrived in Santiago on July 17 and were flown to Rapa Nui for a repatriation ceremony led by Chilean undersecretary of cultural heritage Emilio De la Cerda. Another ceremony was held on the island, where the remains were welcomed by the islanders.

The Rapa Nui National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, covers 44% of the island's surface and is home to the anthropomorphic stone structures known as moai. The Rapa Nui community continues to reclaim its heritage, with the British Museum also facing calls for the return of moai statues held since the 19th century.