1. This glyph type shows the sun. Although raá means 'sun', 'day', 'time', it does not necessarily mean that GD12 glyphs cover all these meanings. And there may be other meanings, though presumably not completely different ones. Stars (hetu'u) were sometimes called 'little suns'.

"In the Maori tongue the word ra denotes the sun, as it does, with some dialectic changes, throughout Polynesia, and as it did in Babylonia and Egypt. Komaru and mamaru also denote the sun, but are seldom heard. These three names are also applied to a canoe-sail, though one fails to see any connection between the two." (Best)

2. There are similarities between the sun and the fires made by humans. Both are giving light and warmth. When Metoro sometimes said ahi (at GD12 glyphs) it is therefore understandable.

"In reference to your question, 'How do the natives of Easter Island obtain fire?' I [Mr. Croft] have to answer that they cannot tell. Their forefathers, like the ancient Romans, had their 'vestal' fires, preserved from ancient times; but the 'Vestal Virgins' of Easter Island were gray-headed and gray-bearded old heathen priests. It was a part of their duty, sacredly attended to, to guard the eternal fire, which was neutral, together with its guardians, in all wars.

From this sacred fire the whole community - at one time a large one - could obtain that useful 'element' from time to time, as they needed it, for culinary and other purposes. This custom is still kept up by a portion of the community, while another portion rely on the matches of Mr. Dutrou-Bornier for their supply.

Another portion of the community have learned from Gambier Islanders (who were sent there by the Catholics, to assist the priests) how to make fire: not by rubbing two sticks together, as you ask in your letter, but by rubbing the point of one stick on the side of the other, until it makes a hot groove and eventually fire - a work generally of from five to ten minutes. In order to illustrate this, I have had a photograph taken for you, showing you the natives in the very act of producing fire, and have also sent you the identical sticks used on that occasion.

You will notice that the wood is of a soft and spongy nature. It grows abundantly on these islands, and is a variety known as the Hibiscus tiliaceus, and called by the natives 'Purau' and 'Fau', pronounced 'Purow' and 'Fow', 'ow' being sounded as in the word 'how'. You can, if you wish, obtain large quantities of it, by going on board the vessels carrying oranges from these islands to San Francisco; the orange crates are mostly made of it. And you could also get one of the Tahitian or other islanders, sailors on board of such vessels, to make fire for you by the aid of these sticks, and thus practically or ocularly answer your own question, as they are all experienced in the art." (Churchill)

3. The circuits of sun and moon were obvious choices for the calendar makers. Probably a solar calendar for the circuit of the year did not exist on Easter Island. Instead, the old concept was two 'years' - one 'year' when sun was 'present' and one 'year' when he was 'absent'.

"Hamiora Pio once spoke as follows to the writer: 'Friend! Let me tell of the offspring of Tangaroa-akiukiu, whose two daughters were Hine-raumati (the Summer Maid - personified form of summer) and Hine-takurua (the Winter Maid - personification of winter), both of whom where taken to wife by the sun ... Now, these women had different homes. Hine-takurua lived with her elder Tangaroa (a sea being - origin and personified form of fish). Her labours were connected with Tangaroa - that is, with fish. Hine-raumati dwelt on land, where she cultivated food products, and attended to the taking of game and forest products, all such things connected with Tane." (Best)

"The Sun spends part of the year with the Winter Maid in the south, afar out on the ocean. In the month of June occurs the changing of the Sun and he slowly returns to his other wife, to the Summer Maid who dwells on land and whose other name is Aroaro-a-manu. This period we call summer. And so acts the Sun in all the years. The child of the Summer Maid was Hikohiko. The old folk have told me [Hamiora Pio, a learned Maori] that at the time of the winter solstice the wise men of yore would say 'The Sun is returning to land to dwell with the Summer Maid.'

The word south in the first sentence should read north in order to make the statement consistent with the actual situation in the latitude of New Zealand. The myth had apparently been brought intact from an ancient habitat in the northern hemisphere." (Makemson)

4. The circuit of the sun around a 'year' (i.e. half-year) can be pictured as a circle, which at the same time then easily can be used to allude to the disc of the sun.

A circle is measured by its radius (or by its diameter). The circumference of the circle has a length equal to its diameter times π.

Counting glyphs in the text of E (Keiti) I stumbled on the fact that both of its sides have 314 glyphs, a number which I interpreted as 100π. Not many rongorongo tablets have all their glyphs still intact, but I could continue by identifying what seems to be the same number symbolism also in the texts of A and H:

However, it is not absolutely certain that the intention of the creators of these texts was (just) to document the numeric value of π.

My use of 'he' for the sun and 'she' for the moon is influenced by Polynesian views, where Tane definitely is a male god and Hina equally clearly is female. Though Hina may once have meant 'the shining one' referring to the sun:

However, in no sense do I wish to suggest that the glyphs we find in the rongorongo texts define the 'persons' according to sex (or gender).

"... On the day when Tîstar produced the rain, when its seas arose therefrom, the whole place, half taken up by water, was converted into seven portions; this portion, as much as one-half, is the middle, and six portions are around; those six portions are together as much as Khvanîras ..." (Sacred Books of the East according to Jensen)

I suggest that what they meant was this shape:

The six 'flames' equals the middle hexagon in area, which implies that the 'middle' is 'one-half'. Moreover, I suggest that the middle hexagon is a region of 'water', whereas the six triangular forms represent 'land' (with the triangles illustrating mountains).

Consequently the earth should have an equal area of sea and land. This ancient idea still governed the travels of Captain Cook. So much sea had been discovered that there must be a continent somewhere in the south. He didn't discover the Antarctic continent, but had he done that and mapped it there still would not have been enough land. Perhaps there was an equal amount of sea and land during the ice age, when the sea level was lower than today?

period 1
	Aa1-18	Aa1-19
period 2
	Aa1-20	Aa1-21
period 3
	Aa1-22	Aa1-23
period 4
	Aa1-24	Aa1-25

The hand gesture means 'eating', the means of growing.