Easter Island moai gain a 3D model on 23 September
Published on 09/27/2026 at 12:19 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
A new 3D model of Easter Island's moai became available on 23 September 2026, bringing the Rano Raraku quarry and its unfinished statues to online visitors. The research project connects a remote archaeological site with a digital experience accessible from Hanga Roa and beyond.
Easter Island moai quarry opens to online visitors
Binghamton University announced the high-resolution model on 23 September 2026. It recreates Rano Raraku, one of the island's main quarries, and includes almost 1,000 moai statues in a landscape that is difficult to inspect on foot.
Users can zoom in and move across the quarry's features. The project allows researchers to study a three-dimensional record while giving the wider public views of slopes, statue surfaces and other areas that are not safely reachable during a physical visit. The Binghamton University announcement says the model is available to view online.
Rano Raraku links the model to Easter Island's heritage
Rano Raraku is more than a backdrop for the digital project. It is the quarry where much of the island's monumental sculpture was produced, leaving unfinished figures and working traces across the volcanic crater.
The digital record also examines 30 separate workshop areas. That detail gives the 23 September 2026 release a direct link to the place itself: the model does not merely show finished statues, but documents the production landscape in which different groups worked at the same time.
Easter Island belongs to a UNESCO-listed cultural landscape. UNESCO describes the island's stone figures as part of a tradition that produced shrines and moai between the tenth and sixteenth centuries, while its World Heritage entry records about 900 statues and more than 300 ceremonial platforms. The UNESCO heritage description identifies Rano Raraku and other quarries as important evidence of how the figures were carved.
Visiting Easter Island: what travellers from Western Europe should know
- The online 3D model became available on 23 September 2026 and can be explored from outside Chile as well as on the island.
- The digital release does not change physical access to Rano Raraku. The quarry remains a rugged volcanic landscape, and the model shows areas that are unsafe to traverse.
- Rano Raraku lies within the archaeological landscape of Easter Island, Chile. Hanga Roa is the principal settlement and the practical base for exploring the island's heritage sites.
- The figures range from small statues to monumental works, and the UNESCO record places the moai within ceremonial platforms, quarries and other archaeological remains.
- The official language is Spanish and the national currency is the Chilean peso.
- Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.
Searching for Easter Island on social platforms
These links open searches for Easter Island on each platform.
Frequently asked questions about Easter Island
When did the Easter Island 3D model become available?
The model became available online on 23 September 2026, according to the Binghamton University announcement.
What does the model show about Easter Island's moai?
It shows Rano Raraku, almost 1,000 statues and 30 workshop areas, including parts of the quarry that are difficult or unsafe to reach on foot.
Where is Easter Island and how do you get there?
Easter Island is a Chilean island in the South Pacific, with Hanga Roa as its principal settlement. The online model can be viewed without travelling to the island, while physical visits take place within its protected archaeological landscape.
