Te Pito Te Henua, or Easter Island: Translation of the Easter Island Tablet, Apai
TRANSLATION OF EASTER ISLAND TABLETS.
APAI.
(Plates XXXVI and XXXVII.)
Timo to kakaha piki apai to roria aruki e tangata Mohonâkuta mohonga matangi eiri apai ia ra Techo i te ika mahoi rua matangi apai tirori mahoi rua matangi tahoi te tha tahoi hakavirri ia tapui rurenga tahri to ika tahoi to ata e tau ira tau na mimi hara rau kina ata rangi no no tupa kau k maka reva atea e tau ira matuku hara atarungi no no tapairu renga ava ki hoato.
Houa kata-kata hura matini ran hanga tamaru kia tun ama tavake toto tunmakeuka tantan mea te kura. Ki hi honga te kura e aku tapaini kari mao aku hoa-hoa tae kote kura mata ki rei aaku tapa iru nei kairi mai aku hora-hora tae kote kura.
Mata ki rei mata ku haka iri marai matairi maru matai maru ka irira tapui rei tapui ranga muku kiri mai aku hoa-hoa tae kote kura. Mata ki rei mata ku haka iri maru matai maru matai rara ku uira tapui rei tapui rei tapu ranga muku kairi mai aku hora-hora kapainga mai. E. tangaroa te mare kura hapai e haka ihi mo topa rei kura taku tapo rei hun atu arua tae haath rangi ura rangi hara-tua oaku matua oaku ma tenga otae ahiri noa ranga ki te rangi no te munniri a rua hiru te hetu, takiri ko mumu ana kia kake mao-mao ake. Haka tau Era a Nuku te atua. Atara kahiria a uka hopua. Tun haka maua kura. Tun te ha hei kura. Tun te tieuituiri kura. Tun te matangi e ria a mangaro.
Mohouakuta, the chief of a powerful clan, when about to make war to revenge the death of one of his relatives, who had been killed by treachery, summoned Timo, the builder of fowl-houses, and ordered him to construct on the windward side of the house of Techo, the fisherman, a fowl-house of one hundred crescent-shaped stakes. It was ordered that of the fowls captured in the war those with long tail-feathers, and the white ones, should be reserved and sent to this house for safe-keeping. The warriors of the clan assembled promptly at the council-fire with The god of feathers, whose wife is Manana. Manana Take came from the skies. She once visited the land in the shape of a fish, which was captured and given to the king on account of its size and beauty. Recognizing the divine nature of the fish, the king was thereafter debarred from swimming in the sea. (The next hieroglyphics on the tablet are supposed to have been written in some ancient language, the key to which has long ago been lost. After this unknown section the translation is continued as follows): When the island was first created and became, known to our forefathers, the land was crossed with roads beautifully paved with flat stones. The stones were laid close together so artistically that no rough edges were exposed. Coffee-trees were growing close together along the borders of the road, that met overhead, and the branches were laced together like muscles. Heke was the builder of these roads, and it was he, who sat in the place of honor in the middle where the roads branched away in every direction. These roads were cunningly contrived to represent the plan of the web of the gray and black-pointed spider, and no man could discover the beginning or the end thereof. (Here again are some sections of the tablet written in the characters that are not understood, after which the following translation is made:) In that happy land, that beautiful land where, Romaha formerly lived with his beloved Hangaroa, and where Turaki used to listen to the voice of the fowl, and feed them with watery food. In that beautiful land that was governed by gods from heaven, and who lived in the water when it was cold. Where the black and white-pointed spider would have mounted to heaven, hat was prevented by the bitterness of the cold.
PLATE XXXVI.
OBVERSE OF EASTER ISLAND TABLET, "APAI."
(Original in possession of Bishop of Axieri.)
PLATE XXXVII.
REVERSE OF EASTER ISLAND TABLET, "APAI."
(Original in possession of Bishop of Axieri.)