World’s Most Interesting Places: Vol. 3 | 60 Minutes Full Episodes

Easter Island (11s)

• Easter Island, famous for its giant stone statues called moai, is one of the most remote inhabited islands in the world.
• The moai, carved from volcanic rock and placed on stone platforms called ahu, represent the indigenous people's ancestors and embody a mystical force called Mana.
• Carved between 1300 and the mid-1400s, the moai were created using simple handheld tools and transported using sleds dragged over logs.
• The exact date of the first settlers' arrival on Easter Island is unknown, but they brought with them the tradition of carving and the belief in Mana.
• The moai statues, partially buried underground, exhibit unique features such as mouth lines, size, shape, and expressions.
• Easter Island was annexed by Chile in 1888, and the indigenous Rapa Nui people gained control of the national park containing the moai in 2017.
• Made of soft volcanic rock called tuff, the moai are vulnerable to erosion from natural elements and require ongoing preservation efforts.
• The increasing tourism on the island, with frequent flights and cruise ship visits, strains its resources and sustainability.
• The transformation of the island to accommodate tourists has limited the Rapa Nui people's access to the moai and caused a loss of their sense of home.
• Christian Moreno Pakara, a historian and tour guide, expresses concerns about tourism's impact on the island's culture and traditions.
• Pakara proposes reviving the art of making and moving statues to ensure the survival of the moai and preserve the knowledge and skills for future generations.

City of Music (13m36s)

• Cremona, Italy, is renowned for its rich history and tradition of violin making, attracting skilled craftsmen like Antonio Stradivari and Matas Hilgers.
• Cremona's violin-making process has remained largely unchanged for over 500 years, with artisans using simple tools and techniques passed down through generations.
• The violin makers source their wood from specific forests in Bosnia and the Italian Dolomites, known for their exceptional acoustic qualities.
• Original Stradivarius violins are rare and highly sought after, with some fetching prices as high as $16 million at auctions.
• Cremona's violin-making heritage is preserved through restoration efforts led by experts like Bruce Carlson and through a renowned violin-making school that attracts students from around the world.

The Scrolls of Herculaneum (26m39s)

• Herculaneum, an ancient Roman city near Pompeii, was buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD and rediscovered in the 18th century.
• Excavations revealed a library filled with charred and brittle papyrus scrolls, potentially containing unknown Greek and Latin masterpieces.
• Three scholars, Brent Seales, Vito Mocella, and Gratiano Rania, are using modern medical imaging technology to unravel the mystery of the scrolls without damaging them.
• Seales, an American computer scientist, developed algorithms and software to virtually unroll and read the scrolls, while Mocella and Rania, Italian scholars, proposed using a synchrotron to scan them.
• Seales criticized Mocella and Rania's findings, expressing skepticism and stating that he could not replicate their results.
• Seales proved his methods by working on a charred fragment of a 1700-year-old scroll from a burned synagogue near the Dead Sea, where he found promising results, revealing the oldest surviving Hebrew script of the Bible.
• The Naples Library, which previously denied Seal access to the Herculaneum Scrolls, is now considering granting him access.

The Resurrection of Notre Dame (39m55s)

• The fire at the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Paris on April 15, 2019, caused significant damage to the roof, spire, and interior, leaving gaping holes in the ceiling.
• The restoration process involves removing toxic lead dust, decontamination, and dismantling twisted steel scaffolding.
• The cause of the fire is still under investigation, and the cathedral's chief architect, Philippe Villeneuve, feels responsible for the incident.
• The restoration aims to rebuild Notre-Dame exactly as it was before the fire, using traditional materials like stone, wood, and lead.
• The original spire, designed by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, will be reconstructed using his original drawings and documentation.
• Over 1,000 French oak trees were felled and finely cut for the new spire, while artisans meticulously restore the cathedral's exterior, towers, interior, and stained-glass windows.
• Stone cutters and sculptors recreate damaged gothic gargoyles and adornments, paying close attention to the original sculptures' details and techniques.
• The great Rose Windows have been cleaned, and painted stone sculptures depicting scenes from the Life of Christ are being carefully restored.
• A 600-ton maze of scaffolding supports the restoration work, particularly the rebuilding of the spire.
• The copper rooster sculpture that survived the fire will be placed atop the new spire, symbolizing the resilience of the French people.
• The restored cathedral is expected to have its scaffolding removed and the spire completed one year before its reopening.