Tahiti’s Taputapuatea marae recognised as a UNESCO site

After 20 years of campaigning, the sacred site of Taputapuatea marae on the island of Raiatea in Tahiti has been recognised by UNESCO as a world heritage site.

The site is recognised as a starting point of Polynesian seafarers who went on to explore Rapa Nui, Hawaii and New Zealand.

It’s a political, ceremonial and funerary centre, which has been used by the Polynesian people for more than 1,000 years.

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It’s the biggest of its kind and was built on the bay of Opoa as it’s where the god Oro, the first god in Polynesian mythology, was born and lived.

During the 1994 restoration of the marae, human bones were discovered underneath some of the structures, leading historians and archaeologists to think they may have been the remains of sacrifices to the god Oro.

Legend has it the ancient Polynesians believed the sacred marae was a place where they could communicate with the gods, and kings and priests would gather here for important meetings and ceremonies, as well as to share advice on navigating the ocean.

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The site consists of three large stone platforms, as well as shrines and tiki statues carved from stone.

The marae is still used as a ceremony site today by locals, and it’s common for people of Polynesian heritage to make pilgrimages to pay respects to their ancestors and feel the surreal atmosphere of this ancient place.