Early Visitors to Easter Island 1864-1877 Translated by Ann M. Altman, Easter Island Foundation, $15, ISBN 1880636050 Reviewed by Paul Bahn
THE first foreigners to live on Easter Island were Eugène Eyraud and Hippolyte Roussel, French missionaries who endured appalling conditions to bring the gospel to the islanders. Alas, the accounts they wrote for their superiors in Paris took little note of the island’s archaeological remains – even the famous stone statues. But they provided the very first reports of the mysterious “rongorongo” script found on wooden tablets.
Their descriptions are included in the latest book in a fine series…
