Moai on Easter Island

In fall 2008, Jo Anne Van Tilburg, Cotsen Institute Research Associate and Director of the Rock Art Archive, was awarded an Archaeological Institute of America (AIA) Site Preservation Grant for the Easter Island Statue Preservation Initiative. The $94,000 grant, which was awarded by the AIA’s new Site Preservation Task Force, will fund efforts to conserve the monolithic statues (moai) of Easter Island (Rapa Nui) through the Easter Island Statue Project, which is directed by Van Tilburg and co-directed by Cristían Arévalo Pakarati. Research Associate Christian Fischer is a collaborator on the project.
As the AIA's second site preservation project, it will develop stone preservation techniques to stop the rapid deterioration of these statues as a result of the fragile nature of their volcanic stone, climate change, and tourism. 

Funding for the first two phases of her proposal was approved, and upon completion of those phases AIA will consider funding phase three.  Congratulations, Jo Anne! 

For more information, click here.