Nan Madol

Having visited Nan Madol in the early '70's, I was astonished to view the massive sturcture of stone walls and rooms. We were escorted by a young future chief who had been educated at Catholic boarding school.  I will refrain from sharing his name.  But, when I asked about the construction of the ruins, he calmly replied that "the chief turned himself into a rooster and flew to the volcano and carried the basalt logs to the location".   The volcano, also known as the Diamond Head of the Western Pacific (Soquez sp? Rock) , was approximately 20 miles away from the ancient site.  We were in the Peace Corps at that time and spent a couple hours walking through the eerie dwelling, which was only a small portion; the rest having sank into the ocean.

This complex is impressive. Many walls are 7 meters high and 4 thick.

Nan Madol was built in a lagoon. It is a large complex of 92 man-made islets covering an area of approximately 200 acres. The complex functioned as the  political and religious center for the Saudeleur dynasty of rulers /kings from approximately 1200 to 1600 AD.

 

The most spectacular of the islets have remains of tombs and other structures built of large columnar basalt stones, brought to Nan Madol from other parts of Pohnpei. Many islets are not visible today due to the vegetation covering them.

Edited by Sander - 10-Aug-2009 at 08:12