This is a most intriguing site and one of our favorites in the Hawaiian islands. It seems King Kamehameha’s ambition was to unite all the Hawaiian islands. At the time he was the ruler of 1/3 of the Big Island, or Hawaii. As part of his plan, he built a temple. The temple is made of a huge stone base, about 30 feet high, 100 wide and more than 220 feet long that would support many smaller, light, thatched roofed structures. The whole base is made with no mortar. He added a difficulty by demanding that all the stones were smooth and the only place under his control where there were sufficient smooth stones was 20 miles away across a mountain over 7000 feet tall on the opposite coast. So he lined up thousands of warriors shoulder to shoulder and they passed stones hand to hand for a year. If you dropped one it was carried back to the starting point. A priest on site determined where each stone was placed. This is revered geography in Hawaiian culture and marks the beginning of the Kingdom of Hawaii.
Offerings were placed here.
The stone base in the foreground was a fort where cannon were placed.
One of four spots in Hawaii where the Kingdom of Hawaii’s flag can be officially flown.