Dave's Photo World

Back to the Easter Island Gallery 3 page

Easter Island, Chile 2003

The Fierce Warrior!

2003-12-02

This dude is one of the island's natives and he and his family live by Ahu Te Pito Kura.  They want Chile to give the lands back to the people, and he poses for photographs for the tourists (for a $1US a photo).  Though I called the picture "the naked savage", he isn't quite naked, and probably isn't savage either.  I wanted to get a picture of him smiling, when he looked quite a bit different to this image.

My reading indicates this was a pose similar to the ones the warriors would have used in the posturing prior to a fight.  He is painted in the traditional fashion, and I understand there are festivals and celebrations where many of the locals honor their heritage by painting themselves in the traditional ways.