Easter Island is a small triangle of rock situated in the Pacific Ocean. It’s about 2,000 miles from the nearest city. Easter Island isfamous for its statues. Hundreds of these huge, stone faces can be found all over the island. Who made them? How did they movethese giant pieces of rock? What happened to the people who lived there? Studies show that people first arrived on the island about1600 years ago. They had a very advanced culture. They made many objects and they had their own written language. However, thenumber of people on the island grew and grew until it reached about 10,000 people. Soon there were too many people and there wasn’tenough food to eat. A terrible war started and many of the statues were broken. When western explorers descovered the island onEaster Day in 1722, the huge rock statues were the only sign that a great society had once lived there.