Rapa Nui History- Assessment By Torkington Period: 300 to 700 BCE Polynesians settle on Rapa Nui using large canoes 1000 Construction of Ahu and Moai begins Period: 1550 to 1650 Highest population levels 1722 Jacob Roggeveen discovers Rapa Nui 1774 James Cook visits Rapa Nui 1853 Easter Island made a Chilean National Park 1862 Peruvian Slave Raids Peruvian slavers raided the island and kidnapped about 1,000 men to work in guano mines off the Peruvian coast. 1888 Birdman competition ceases to exist Possibly because of the decline of resources, people turned against each other and were therefore unable to continue tradition.