A Short History of Progress

On Easter, 1722, a Dutch Fleet first spotted a landmass they would come to call Easter Island. Though the island was covered in gigantic stone statues—maoi, or Easter Island heads—it was barren of trees. The boats of the Polynesian people that lived on the island, though traditionally talented sea-farers, were made of wood scraps.

Settled by the Polynesians in the fifth c. AD, the 64-square mile Easter Island was once verdant. Over time, population on the island grew and a social elite developed. “Each clan began to honour its ancestry with impressive stone images […] as time went on, the statue cult became increasingly rivalrous and extravagant […] meaning more timber, rope, and manpower” (59) used for their manufacture. This process, along with rats brought on European boats, devastated the forests of the island. Wood became a precious commodity, as it also allowed opportunities to fish and leave the island in the form of boats. Wars over wood broke out. The population, which swelled during times of richness, now declined as the people starved. The last archaeological deposits are hordes of weapons, used to fight and defend. Though it happened before their eyes, the people of the island never chose to cease their ecological devastation.