Birdman cult

E292562

The Birdman cult was a religious and political tradition on Rapa Nui (Easter Island) centered on an annual competition to retrieve the first sooty tern egg, which conferred sacred status and leadership on the victor.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
Birdman cult canonical 2

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (44)

Predicate Object
instanceOf political tradition ⓘ
religious tradition ⓘ
ritual competition ⓘ
associatedArt petroglyphs of birdmen ⓘ
rock carvings at Orongo ⓘ
associatedBird Onychoprion fuscatus ⓘ
linked to: Onychoprion

sooty tern ⓘ
associatedIsland Motu Iti ⓘ
Motu Nui ⓘ
linked to: Motu Nui islet
associatedWith Tangata manu ⓘ
centeredOn annual competition ⓘ
retrieval of first sooty tern egg ⓘ
competitionOutcome conferral of leadership ⓘ
conferral of sacred status ⓘ
country Chile ⓘ
culturalContext Polynesian religious traditions ⓘ
Rapa Nui religion ⓘ
linked to: Rapa Nui mythology
declineCause Christianization of Rapa Nui ⓘ
Peruvian slave raids ⓘ
epidemic diseases ⓘ
documentedBy 19th-century explorers ⓘ
European missionaries ⓘ
flourishedUntil late 19th century ⓘ
heritageStatus part of Rapa Nui National Park ⓘ
languageOfName Rapa Nui language ⓘ
locatedIn Easter Island ⓘ
Rapa Nui ⓘ
linked to: Easter Island
mainDeity Makemake ⓘ
politicalRole selection of temporal leader ⓘ
religiousConcept fertility and renewal ⓘ
sacred kingship ⓘ
religiousRole selection of sacred leader ⓘ
ritualPractice cliff descent from Orongo ⓘ
dangerous sea swim to Motu Nui ⓘ
presentation of first egg to patron chief ⓘ
ritualSite Orongo ⓘ
Rano Kau crater rim ⓘ
socialStructure competition among clan champions ⓘ
successorReligion Roman Catholicism on Rapa Nui ⓘ
timePeriod early historic period ⓘ
late prehistoric period ⓘ
titleOfVictor birdman ⓘ
tangata manu ⓘ
linked to: Tangata manu
UNESCOStatus associated with UNESCO World Heritage Site Rapa Nui National Park ⓘ

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (2)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.