"Where Hawaiian families placed their children's umbilical cords to root them in the land and bless them with long life"
Puu Loa Petroglyphs
Volcano, Hawaii, United States
On a 550-year-old lava flow in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, over 23,000 petroglyphs cover a volcanic dome called the Hill of Long Life. For generations, Hawaiian families journeyed here to place their newborns' umbilical cords in small carved depressions, sealing each with a stone and a prayer. The piko buried in rock bound child to land, drawing the mana of this place into a life just beginning. Native Hawaiian families still come to honor these ancestral ties.
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Quick Facts
Location
Volcano, Hawaii, United States
Coordinates
19.2890, -155.1299
Last Updated
Jan 16, 2026
Learn More
The petroglyphs at Pu'u Loa were carved primarily between 1200 and 1450 CE, making them centuries old when Europeans first reached Hawaii. The volcanic dome on which they rest formed around 1475 CE. For 500 years, Hawaiian families have come to this place to mark births and bless children. The tradition predates all written records of Hawaii.
Origin Story
No single origin narrative explains why this particular hill became the Hill of Long Life. The practice of piko burial existed across Hawaii, but no other site accumulated such density of marks. What made Pu'u Loa different may have been its location along coastal travel routes, its prominence as a volcanic dome rising from the surrounding flows, or a quality of mana that early visitors perceived and subsequent generations confirmed.
The site's significance fits within the broader Hawaiian worldview where land is not inert resource but living ancestor. The word 'aina, usually translated as land, literally means that which feeds. To place a child's piko in the rock was to feed the child to the land and the land to the child, creating reciprocal relationship. The volcanic origin of the islands, constantly renewed by Pele's fire, added additional meaning: to bury the cord in young lava was to connect human creation to geological creation, child's birth to island's birth.
Key Figures
The Unknown Families
The petroglyphs at Pu'u Loa were carved by countless Hawaiian families over centuries, each marking the birth of a child. No individual creators are named in historical records. The carvings represent collective tradition, not individual artistry.
Kalapana Region Families
Hawaiian 'ohana from the Kalapana region of the Big Island maintain particular genealogical ties to Pu'u Loa. These families continue to revere the site and visit for ceremonial purposes.
Pele
The goddess of fire and volcanoes is intimately connected to the landscape of which Pu'u Loa is part. The lava flow on which the petroglyphs sit was created by her power. While Pele is not specifically venerated at Pu'u Loa, her presence underlies the entire volcanic environment.
Spiritual Lineage
Pu'u Loa belongs to Native Hawaiian tradition, specifically to the families who used this site for piko ceremonies over centuries. The practice of petroglyph carving was widespread across Hawaii, but this concentration is unmatched. Today the site is managed by the National Park Service in consultation with Native Hawaiian communities. The tradition of ceremonial visitation by families with genealogical ties to the area continues.
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