Puna Pau

Nestled in Chile, Puna Pau is a small, extinct volcano that served as the quarry for the soft red scoria stone used to create the ceremonial topknots, or pukao, placed atop certain moai statues on Easter Island. This site was crucial for supplying the distinctive red stone that adorned the heads of moai at the most important ceremonial sites, known as ahu. Today, visitors can explore the remnants of this ancient quarry and see over two dozen mostly finished pukao, providing a tangible link to the island’s rich cultural heritage.