Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino

Native peoples > Rapa Nui

Economy

In ancient times, the people of Rapa Nui subsisted by growing several varieties of plantain, squash, tubers and sugar cane, and complemented their diet with fishing, hunting and gatheringfood from the sea. They also used the native trees on the island to make textiles and obtain pigments and high quality timber, and they introduced the Polynesian mouse and domestic chickens to the island.