Rongorongo: The Writing of Easter Island

Rongorongo is the mysterious script of Easter Island. In 1864 Brother Eugene Eyraud, a European missionary, mentioned hundreds of wooden tablets which he discovered on Easter Island. Today, only about 21 tablets survive. The tablets have only been partially deciphered yet most of the writing still remains a mystery.

 Oral tradition tells us that scribes used obsidian flakes or shark teeth to carve the figures into the tablets.  The writing includes about 120 symbols, which represent birds, fish, gods, plants and a variety of geometric shapes. The other unique aspect of Rongorongo is the direction of the writing. Supposedly, the writing starts from the left-hand bottom corner and then proceeds from left to right. At the end of the line you must turn the tablet around and continue reading the opposite way.

                 Symbols of Rongorongo                                                                Rongorongo Tablet