Moai Statue Shows Lasting Bond Between Miyagi Pref. Town, Easter Island; Stands as Sign of Recovery from Devastation

By Mika Otsuki / Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent

7:00 JST, March 14, 2026

EASTER ISLAND, Chile — The late Chilean sculptor Benedicto Tuki created a moai statue Chile gifted to the town of Minami-Sanriku, Miyagi Prefecture, as a symbol of recovery from the Great East Japan Earthquake. Friendship exchanges between his family and residents of the town have been going strong for many years.

Tuki’s family on Easter Island is currently working to share the history of this friendship.

On March 1 at the Museum of Sculptures Aukara in central Easter Island, the family was setting up a section dedicated to the moai statue sent to Minami-Sanriku. The section is planned to be completed by around May.

“We want to share the story of such an important encounter from this island,” said Tuki’s eldest daughter Paula Rossetti, 55, who is the museum curator.

The section displays a newsletter compiled by students of Shizugawa High School — now Minami-Sanriku High School — detailing the background of how the statue was created and donated to the town.

In 1991, Minami-Sanriku received a moai statue as a gift from Chile, forged by their shared experience of being affected by the 1960 Chilean earthquake. This statue was damaged in the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, and the Chilean government pledged to donate a new statue. Tuki created it free of charge using stone from the island, and the 3-meter-tall statue arrived in May 2013.

Tuki, who died at age 76 in 2022, shed tears when he saw the devastation in Minami-Sanriku firsthand.

“I hope my moai statue will remove the sadness in Minami-Sanriku and watch over its revival,” he said at the time.

Proceeds from the sale of moai-themed pin badges in Minami-Sanriku were used for reconstruction funds. Tuki’s family was kept informed of statue-related matters such as the proceeds being used to purchase a town bus and when the moai statue was relocated to a seaside plaza.

Invited by the Chilean side, high school students of the town visited the island. After graduating from high school, some of them studied Spanish at a university and visited the island again to express their gratitude.

In February, Tuki’s wife, Ana Maria Arredondo, 79, who is the museum director, sent a message to the town: “The moai statue will connect us in our hearts forever.”

Paula said, “Part of my father’s soul resides in the moai statue in Minami-Sanriku.”

Paula now envisions producing a documentary film. She said she wants to film Tuki’s grandchildren and great-grandchildren visiting this Japanese town as well as encountering the moai statue and local residents he had interacted with.