A Dutch drawing from 1728, right, seems to show natives moving an Easter Island statue in an upright position. Although it is unclear in this image whether what is being depicted is moving or erecting, Thor Heyerdahl was told by village elders that the statues walked from the quarry to the ahu. While this seems fanciful some have considered that it meant the statues where moved in an upright position.
Several experiments were carried out and although it was proven that the statues could have been moved by rocking and rolling their bases similar to the way we would move a refrigerator or large piece of furniture, the method would have caused so much damage to the base of the statue that it would seem an unlikely method except when the statue was at the end of its journey and ready for final positioning.
