Newly Uncovered Clues Reveal Mysterious Family Feud Behind Easter Island’s Iconic Stone Heads

If you’ve ever wondered what could possibly top the emotional endurance required to host your in-laws for a long weekend, how about waking up to a 90-ton reminder—sculpted lovingly and left in the yard, for all eternity? The Easter Island heads have always seemed a little excessive to me . I mean, forget scented candles or a fruit basket, right? According to a new study that had me snorting coffee out my nose, these iconic statues might just be history’s largest guilt gifts—a testament to the unstoppable force of mother-in-law generosity (or passive aggression, your call) . So next time you’re baffled by an oddly shaped present, remember, it could be the start of a world wonder that future archaeologists are still cracking jokes about centuries later . Curious just how far a mother-in-law is willing to go, stone by awkward stone? LEARN MORE.

IOWA CITY, IA—Shedding light on the age-old mystery surrounding the monolithic statues, a new study published Thursday in the Journal Of Archaeological Science found evidence suggesting that the Easter Island heads were gifts from an overbearing mother-in-law. “By deciphering glyphs on wooden tablets, we discovered an inhabitant of the island once made an offhand remark about liking stone monoliths one time back in 1250, and his mother-in-law took this as an invitation to bring one over every time she dropped by for a visit,” said the study’s author, Professor Mallory Jacobs of the University of Iowa, explaining that the mother-in-law continued making gifts of the 30-foot-tall, 90-ton creations even after her daughter and son-in-law explained that they had no room. “At first the family stored the heads in a closet, but they got tired of lugging out the massive monoliths every time the mother-in-law came over. Eventually they just left the statues outside along the island’s perimeter year-round. During her visits, the mother-in-law expressed that she felt good knowing her family would be forced to think of her each time they looked at the statues looming over them.” The study concludes that the civilization on Easter Island collapsed after the mother-in-law announced plans to move in.