What s the real story of the Poike ditch?
A. Island legend claims that the Poike ditch was the focal point of a battle between two rival societal classes on the island (known as the Hanau Momoko and Hanau Eepe terms once mistranslated to mean “Short Ears” and “Long Ears”) and that all but one of the Hanau Eepe were immolated in a great conflagration in a ditch constructed for that purpose. While we know today that fires were kindled in the ditch, no evidence has ever been found that humans were killed or burnt there. In fact, the ditch appears to be a natural geographical formation modified by the Rapanui. Archaeologist Charles Love has suggested that the fires in the ditch were really used in the preparation of food for workers at the Rano Raraku statue quarry. This would help to explain the Rapanui term for the Poike ditch: Ko Te Umu o te Hanau Eepe (“The Earth Oven of the Hanau Eepe”). See below for more information on island conflicts.
