Tangata Manu
The Tangata Manu (Birdman) was the winner of the annual competition at Orongo on Rapa Nui (Easter Island). The competition was established by the god Makemake. Each year, representatives of the competing Rapanui clans would descend the sheer 300-meter cliffs of Orongo, swim across shark-infested waters to the islet of Motu Nui, and wait for the Manutara (sooty tern) to lay its first egg. The competitor who successfully retrieved the first egg became the Tangata Manu for that year. He gained supreme temporal power, his clan received special privileges, and he was treated as a living embodiment