Birds screech and trees rustle as we hike along the barest of paths through the jungle, the tropical humidity making me bathe in my own sweat, the uneven ground shifting under my boots, alone with my guide on the tiny island of Kurutaukari in the South Pacific. We’ve come here to examine some supposedly fine examples of stone carving made hundreds of years ago by a relatively unknown isolated community with a unique culture. My guide, Arani, who is thankfully clearing a wide web out of our way right now, has told me that there are some truly impressive statues here. Examining them, I am sure, will be invaluable to…