Fun Fact #501 The Moai Awards
Fun Fact #501
The Moai Awards
On May 29th 1962, as the first glimmers of sunrise started to break their way over the horizon , The town of Zaandvort (SandFord) found a head on their shoreline. However this was no crime scene, rather it was a Moai Head from Easter Island and by April 1st the story made international news.
Moai are monolithic statues raised by the Rapa Nui on Easter Island to be living memories of their ancestors, and at that time were virtually unknown across the world. Yet by the end of April 1st local stone mason Edo Van Tetterode revealed he had made the 4ft statue as a joke. Still it took time for news that this was actually a hoax to get out and so the Statue was placed in the Town’s square as people flocked from around the world to see the prank. The following year Mr. Tetterode helped found “The National April 1st Society” which inspected every April Fool’s day until 1996 and awarded bronze Moai Trophies based upon Originality, Cause (did it bring awareness to a good cause –The Red Cross' pranks often won this) and of course Humor. The committee and the --Still Standing-- Moai head, laid the groundwork for Zaandvort to be the Tourist attraction it is today.
Don't worry, The Rapa Nui received an award as well, since before the incident the heads were practically unheard of hidden in the research of Thor Heyerdahl. After the incident National Geographic featured them turning them into a popular tourist spot which has helped fund the preservation and maintenance of the Island ever since. Out of the 900 official Moai statues only 7 have been removed from the Island and can now be found in some of the most prestigious Museums in the world. 2 of which can be found in the US today, one in the Smithsonian, while the other is in New York’s American Museum of Natural History, which you may recognize as the inspiration for “Dum-Dum” in the Night At the Museum Movies.
Lastly Since Mr. Tetterode’s death in 1996, the Netherlands has taken up awarding a Moai every year as the “Oscar of Pranks”, although Bronze Replica Moai Awards can be found online (average of $44) and uninscribed to allow any group or city to mark Moai Trophies and award Noteworthy Pranksters. Quick question though, If you're gunning it for one of these trophies, are the then a (Moai) Headhunter?
As always thanks for reading and please have a wonderful day.
