Thor Heyerdahl. Biography. Thor Heyerdahl - biography, information, personal life

Biography

early years

Thor Heyerdahl was born in the small town of Larvik in southern Norway to Thor and Alison Ljung Heyerdahl. My father owned a brewery. His mother worked in an anthropological museum, and young Tour became acquainted with Darwin's theory of evolution quite early. From his childhood, Heyerdahl was interested in zoology. In the house where Tour lived in those years, he created a small museum in which the main exhibit was a viper.

As a child, Tur was terribly afraid of water, because he almost drowned twice. As he later recalled, if at the age of 17 someone had told him that he would sail on the ocean on a fragile boat for several months, he would have considered that person crazy. He was able to part with this fear only at the age of 22, when, having accidentally fallen into the river, he found the strength to swim out on his own.

As a true patriot, he wanted to fight the enemy and, eventually moving to the United States, enlisted in the army. After graduating from a sabotage radio school in England, Heyerdahl and his comrades from the so-called “I Group” were prepared for deployment to Norway, occupied by the German army. With the rank of lieutenant, he went on an American liner as part of a convoy to Murmansk. At the end of the campaign, the convoy was attacked by German submarines, which was repulsed with the help of Soviet ships. Upon arrival in Kirkenes, Heyerdahl's group was supposed to maintain radio contact between the headquarters of the Norwegian detachment and London. This is where the end of the war found him.

Expedition "Kon-Tiki"

Kon-Tiki demonstrated that a primitive raft, using the Humboldt Current and a favorable wind, could indeed sail across the Pacific Ocean relatively easily and safely. westward. Thanks to the keel system and sail, the raft proved its high maneuverability. In addition, fish accumulated in fairly large quantities between the balsa logs, which suggests that ancient sailors could have used it to quench their thirst in the absence of other sources of fresh water. Inspired by the Kon-Tiki voyage, others repeated this journey on their rafts. Thor Heyerdahl's book "Kon-Tiki" has been translated into 66 languages. Documentary about the expedition, filmed by Heyerdahl during the voyage, received an Oscar in 1951.

Meanwhile, direct evidence of contacts between South America and Polynesia is also known: the most significant is the fact that the South American sweet potato is the main food product in almost all of Polynesia. Heyerdahl experimentally proved that neither the sweet potato nor the coconut could reach the Polynesian islands by swimming. Regarding the linguistic argument, Heyerdahl gave an analogy according to which he prefers to believe that African Americans came from Africa, judging by the color of their skin, and not from England, as one might assume from their speech.

A book “Expeditions to Ra” was written about these expeditions and a documentary film was created.

"The similarities between early civilizations Egypt and Mexico are not limited to just pyramids... Both Mexico and Egypt had a highly developed system of hieroglyphic writing... Scientists note the similarity of fresco painting in temples and tombs, similar designs of temples with skillful megalithic colonnades. It is pointed out that when constructing slab vaults, architects on both sides of the Atlantic did not know the art of constructing a real arch. Attention is drawn to the existence of cyclopean-sized stone human figures, amazing astronomical knowledge and a highly developed calendar system in Mexico and Egypt. Scientists compare the amazingly perfect practice of trephination of the human skull, characteristic of the cultures of the ancient Mediterranean, Mexico and Peru, and also point to a similar Egyptian-Peruvian custom of mummification. These and other numerous evidences of similarities of cultures, taken together, could support the theory that once or repeatedly ships from the shores Mediterranean Sea crossed Atlantic Ocean and brought the foundations of civilization to the natives of Mexico.”

In addition to the main aspects of the expedition, Heyerdahl deliberately selected a crew that included representatives of different races, nationalities, religions and political beliefs in order to demonstrate how on such a small floating island people can cooperate fruitfully and live in peace. In addition, the expedition collected samples of ocean pollution and submitted its report to the United Nations.

Crew "Ra"

Ra-II crew

Boat "Tigris"

Heyerdahl's latest project is described in his book In Search of Odin. In the footsteps of our past." Heyerdahl began excavations in Azov, a city near the Sea of Azov. He tried to find traces ancient civilization Asgard, corresponding to the texts of the Ynglinga Saga, authored by Snorri Sturluson. This saga tells of a chief named Odin leading a tribe called the Æsir north through Saxony to the island of Funen in Denmark, and finally settling in Sweden. There, according to a text by Snorri Sturluson, he made such an impression on local residents with their varied knowledge that they began to worship him after his death as a god (see also “House of Ynglings”, “Mythical Kings of Sweden”). Heyerdahl suggested that the story told in the Ynglinga Saga was based on real facts.

Subsequent years

Thor Heyerdahl's grave at Kolla Mikeri

In subsequent years, Heyerdahl was busy with many expeditions and archaeological projects. However, he remained best known for his sea voyages on boats and with special attention to issues of cultural diffusionism.

In 1991, the 77-year-old father of five Heyerdahl married for the third time. His chosen one was former Miss France 1954 Jacqueline Beer, who was 18 years younger than her husband. Having lived on the Italian Riviera for many years, Heyerdahl moved with his wife to Tenerife.

Heyerdahl died at the age of 87 from a brain tumor on the Colla Micheri estate in the Italian town of Alassio, surrounded by his family - his wife Jacqueline, sons Bjorn, Thor and daughters Marian and Bettina. In his homeland, a monument was erected to him during his lifetime, and a museum was opened in his house. On January 18, 2011, the modern frigate "Thor Heyerdahl" (F312), named in honor of the great traveler, entered the Norwegian Navy.

Followers

Heyerdahl's expeditions were spectacular events, and his heroic journeys on fragile boats captured people's imagination. Despite the fact that most of his works caused controversy in scientific circles, Heyerdahl undoubtedly raised public interest in ancient history and the achievements of different cultures and peoples around the world. He also showed that long-distance travel across the ocean was technically possible for Neolithic man. In fact, he was a great practitioner of experimental archaeology. Heyerdahl's books have served as a source of inspiration for several generations of readers. He introduced readers of all ages to the world of archeology and ethnography, making them attractive through his colorful travels. This Norwegian adventurer often broke the boundaries of ordinary consciousness. “Borders? - he asked. “I’ve never seen them, but I’ve heard that they exist in the minds of most people.”

In 1954, William Willis sailed alone from Peru to American Samoa on a small raft called the Seven Sisters.

In and years Eduard Ingrish (Czechoslovakia) repeated the Kon-Tiki expedition on the Kantuta rafts.

In 2006, the path of the Kon-Tiki was repeated by a crew of 6 people, which included Heyerdahl’s grandson Olav Heyerdahl. The expedition was called "Tangaroa" and was organized in memory of Thor Heyerdahl with the aim of making observations of the state of the environment in the Pacific Ocean. A film was made about this journey.

Criticism

Many of Thor Heyerdahl's theories, especially the theory about the peopling of Polynesia, have been criticized. Thus, Eric de Bishop believed that there was only a cultural exchange between the Polynesians and the population South America, since the maritime technology of the Polynesians is superior to that of other peoples, which he himself proved by sailing on the Kaimiloa.

Miloslav Stingl called the “legend of brilliant blondes” very similar to “theories that not so long ago brought humanity to the brink of disaster.”

Awards and honorary titles

Bibliography

1938 - På Jakt efter Paradiset - Hunt for Paradise (Russian translation of “In Search of Paradise”)
1948 - The Kon-Tiki Expedition: By Raft Across the South Seas (Russian translation of “Journey to the Kon-Tiki”)
1952 - American Indians in the Pacific: The Theory Behind the Kon-Tiki Expedition (Russian translation of “Thur Heyerdahl. Adventures of a Theory”, 1969)
1957 - Aku-Aku: The Secret of Easter Island (Russian translation of “Aku-Aku. The Secret of Easter Island.”)
1968 - Sjøveier til Polynesia (Sea Routes to Polynesia, Chicago: Rand McNally, 1968).
1970 - The Ra Expeditions (Russian translation of “Ra”)
1974 - FATU-HIVA (Back to Nature), (Russian translation of “Fatu Hiva: a return to nature”, 1978)
1978 - Early Man and the Ocean: The Beginning of Navigation and Seaborn Civilizations (Russian translation " Ancient man and the ocean", 1982)
1979 - The Tigris Expedition: In Search of Our Beginnings ((Russian translation of “Tigris Expedition”)
1982 - “The Art of Easter Island”
1986 - The Maldive Mystery (Russian translation of “The Maldivian Mystery”

In the spring of 1969, the papyrus boat "Ra" left the port of Safi, Morocco, under the command of the Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl. The crew, consisting of 7 people, including our compatriot Yuri Senkevich, was faced with the task of sailing across the Atlantic Ocean.

Yuri Senkevich and Thor Heyerdahl during a trip on the papyrus boat "Ra", 1969

After analyzing many finds that depicted papyrus ships, Heyerdahl began to think that back in the days of pre-Inca America, ancient sailors crossed the Pacific Ocean using reed ships. The possible similarity of the ancient reed ships, which were made in Mexico and Peru, with the papyrus ships used by the inhabitants of the ancient civilizations of the Mediterranean, has not been denied by other competent researchers.

In 1969, Thor Heyerdahl conceived a papyrus boat expedition across the Atlantic. The researcher provided artists from Lake Chad with images and models of ancient Egyptian ships. Based on this material, they built a ship from papyrus, which was symbolically named "Ra"

In the 60s, Heyerdahl met with Mstislav Keldysh while visiting the USSR. The conversation turned to Heyerdahl's future expeditions, and Keldysh asked him: “Why don’t you take a Russian with you?” And, remembering Keldysh’s question, he wrote a letter to the Soviet academician asking him to find him a Russian doctor who speaks English language and having a sense of humor. The choice fell on a young doctor who had recently returned from Antarctica from the Vostok station after a year's winter, Yuri Senkevich.
So Senkevich ended up as part of an international crew: Thor Heyerdahl (Norway), Abdula Jibrin (Chad), Norman Baker (USA), Santiago Genoves (Mexico), George Sorial (Egypt), Carlo Mauri (Italy) and Yuri Senkevich (USSR)

On May 25, 1969, the papyrus boat "Ra" was launched. On board, in addition to the 7 crew members, there was also a Safi monkey, chickens and a duck.

A fair wind and the North Equatorial Current contributed to the fact that “Ra” covered 5 thousand kilometers of sea route in 2 months of sailing, but the journey ended with the boat sinking

According to Yuri Senkevich, this happened because the builders of the boat from Lake Chad cut off the curved stern, deciding not to be guided by Heyerdahl's calculations and drawings. And the stern was necessary so that the boat would not flood when it overcomes high waves. When they realized this, the stern was added, but the integrity of the structure was already compromised. A month after entering the open ocean, the stern began to submerge in the water, and “Ra” literally turned into a submarine.

Here are excerpts from Yuri Senkevich’s diary:
"June 4. In total, we had five oars broken and one lost."
“June 29. There is no doubt that we are sinking more and more, albeit slowly. There is also no doubt that we will not be able to sink, but that the Ra will be flooded up to the deck - that’s for sure.”
"July 9. On the right, the ropes binding the papyrus are breaking. The entire starboard side is shaking and threatening to break away from us."

The crew bravely tried to save the boat. Below the steering bridge was a six-person foam life raft, which was sawn apart and secured at the stern. This helped to hold out for another two weeks before the SOS signal was sent.

The signal was heard from an American yacht. Word to Yuri Senkevich: “Three or four days passed, we were about to meet our saviors. And, rejoicing at this, we sent everything unnecessary overboard, including food and water, not expecting that the wait for the meeting would stretch for another five days. These five days were not the best of our lives." On July 16, 1969, exhausted travelers left the long-suffering boat and moved to the Shenandoah yacht. Thus ended this first, but not the last, journey.

And a year later, in May, the launch of “Ra-2” took place.

"Cinema Travelers Club" know the name
famous Norwegian traveler and anthropologist Thor Heyerdahl. From childhood, Heyerdahl was interested in zoology. And as he grew up, he made traveling his life’s work. 10 most famous travels Heyerdahl are presented below.

This was Heyerdahl and his wife's first trip. The events that happened to the newlyweds were described in the book “In Search of Paradise.” The book was published, but due to the outbreak of World War II, it was almost forgotten.
Subsequently, in 1971, the book was translated into Russian and published under the title “In Search of Paradise. Aku-Aku."

In order to find traces of sea travelers who sailed from South-East Asia at the beginning of the Stone Age, but never reached Polynesia before the beginning of the second millennium AD, Thor Heyerdahl went to Canada, where he began to get acquainted with the life of the local Indians. The Second found him there World War. With the rank of lieutenant, after graduating from the English sabotage radio school, he headed to the shores of Norway. The purpose of the action is to transport the group to the territory occupied by the Germans. During the voyage, the American liner on which Heyerdahl was sailing was attacked by a German submarine. (Salvation came in the form of a Soviet ship.) Upon arrival at Kirkenes, Heyerdahl was involved in maintaining the squad's radio communications with the Allied troops.

After the end of the war, Heyerdahl returned to his anthropological research, and in a team with four tireless researchers, he went to Peru. From the wood of the lightest tree (balsa), they built a raft called “Kon-Tiki”. Having loaded their supplies onto it, the brave six headed to the shores of the Tuamotu, located at a distance of 8,000 km.
And on August 7, 1947, after 101 days of sailing, they reached their goal. With their journey, they proved the possibility of the existence of ancient sea routes between South America and Polynesia. T. Heyerdahl's book “Kon-Tiki” has been translated into 66 languages of the world!

In 1956, Heyerdahl organized a Norwegian archaeological expedition to Easter Island. Heyerdahl, together with professional archaeologists, spent several months on the island. During this time, research was carried out regarding the stone “graven images” of Easter. The expedition published three large volumes of scientific reports. This expedition marked the beginning of a study of the “phenomenon” of Easter, which continues to this day. In Easter Island: The Mystery Solved, Heyerdahl proposed a more detailed theory of the island's history.

In 1969, a papyrus boat was built, on which Heyerdahl attempted to cross the Atlantic Ocean, choosing the coast of Morocco (Africa) as his starting point. The boat was designed based on images of boats Ancient Egypt, and named "Ra". Its creators were builders from Lake Chad, and the reeds were delivered from Ethiopia. After several weeks of sailing, due to technical problems that led to the death of “Ra”, the crew was forced to evacuate.

In 1970, a modified version of Ra was built, which was called Ra-II. Craftsmen from Lake Titicaca took part in its construction. Departing from the same port as Ra, the boat successfully reached Barbados, demonstrating that ancient sailors could make transatlantic crossings under sail using the Canary Current. The Ra-II crew was international. Our country was represented by Yuri Senkevich.

In 1977, another reed boat was built, called Tigris. The purpose of the trip was to prove that trade and migration contacts could exist between the Indus civilization and Mesopotamia.

8 Travel to the Maldives

In 1983, Thor Heyerdahl organized an expedition whose purpose was to examine the mounds found on Maldives. The foundations of buildings oriented to the east were discovered there, as well as sculptures of bearded sailors with elongated earlobes. This confirmed the theory that the Maldives were settled by immigrants from Sri Lanka. The discoveries made by Heyerdahl are described in the book “The Maldivian Mystery”.

9 Expedition to the island of Tenerife

1991 is associated with Heyerdahl's expedition on the island of Tenerife, where he explored the Guimar pyramids. According to Heyerdahl's theory, they are not mountains of cobblestones, but astronomical pyramids.

10 Expedition to Azov

Heyerdahl's latest project is described in detail in the book In Search of Odin. In the footsteps of our past." Thor Heyerdahl talks about the search for the ancient civilization of Asgard. According to his theory, the homeland of the Aesir (the ancient inhabitants of Scandinavia) was the territory of the northern Azov region and Azerbaijan. Trying to prove his theory, based on the Icelandic sagas of the 12th and 13th centuries, Heyerdahl began archaeological excavations at ancient city Tanais on the shore Sea of Azov.

Thor Heyerdahl spent the advanced years of his life in the Italian town of Alassio, surrounded by his family. In his homeland (Norway), a monument was erected to him during his lifetime, and a museum was opened in his house.

Thor Heyerdahl (Norwegian Thor Heyerdahl). Born October 6, 1914 in Larvik, Norway - died April 18, 2002 in Alassio, Italy. Norwegian archaeologist, traveler and writer, author of many books.

From childhood, Heyerdahl was interested in zoology. In the house where Tour lived in those years, he created a small museum in which the main exhibit was a viper.

He was able to part with this fear only at the age of 22, when, having accidentally fallen into the river, he found the strength to swim out on his own.

In 1933, 19-year-old Thor Heyerdahl entered the University of Oslo at the Faculty of Natural Geography. There he studied zoology and geography. At the same time, Tur met in Bergen Björn Kraepelin, a Norwegian traveler who lived in Polynesia, Tahiti, during the First World War.

Björn Kraepelin, who earned the respect of the leaders of the island of Tahiti, collected a huge collection of objects and books. Tour gained access to Kraepelin's library and independently studied the history and culture of Polynesia (this collection was later acquired from Kraepelin's heirs by the library of the University of Oslo and transferred to the research department of the Kon-Tiki Museum). This meeting had big influence on a young student, largely determining his choice of a career as a researcher and traveler.

After seven semesters of study and consultation with experts in Berlin, zoology professors Christina Bonnevie and Hjalmar Brock designed and organized a project that involved visiting some of the remote islands of Polynesia and studying how the animals inhabiting the islands today might have arrived there.

In December 1936, on Christmas Eve, Heyerdahl married Liv Cucheron-Thorpe, whom he met shortly before entering the university (she studied economics there).

In early 1937, immediately after their marriage, Heyerdahl and Liv left Oslo and traveled by train to Marseille. Sailing from Marseilles, they crossed the Atlantic Ocean, passed through the Panama Canal and, passing through the Pacific Ocean, arrived at Tahiti. Tur and Liv spent one month in the house of the Tahitian leader, where they learned the science of survival in natural conditions. Then they moved to an isolated Fatu Hiva island(one of the group of Marquesas islands), where they spent a whole year in isolation from civilization.

It seemed to them that they could live in conditions of pristine nature, like Adam and Eve, without any special difficulties. However, over time, Liv and Tur began to develop bleeding ulcers on their legs; they urgently needed to see a doctor, who, fortunately, was found on a neighboring island. Having recovered, the young people returned to Fatu Hiva, but after some time, feeling growing hostility from the local population, they were forced to return to their homeland.

His first book tells about the events that happened to Thor Heyerdahl during his stay in the Marquesas Islands "In Search of Paradise"(1938). It was published in Norway, but due to the outbreak of World War II it was almost forgotten. Somewhat later, having already become famous for his other travels and work in other areas, Heyerdahl published new option books called "Fatu Hiva".

In order to find traces of sea travelers who sailed from Southeast Asia at the beginning of the Stone Age, but never reached Polynesia before the beginning of the second millennium AD, Thor Heyerdahl went to Canada, where he began to get acquainted with the life of the local Indians. There he was caught by the Second World War.

At the end of the campaign, the convoy was attacked by German submarines, which was repulsed with the help of Soviet ships. Upon arrival in Kirkenes, Heyerdahl's group was supposed to maintain radio contact between the headquarters of the Norwegian detachment and London. This is where the end of the war found him.

Heyerdahl was prompted to sail on a raft across the Pacific Ocean by ancient chronicles and drawings of Spanish conquistadors depicting Incan rafts, as well as local legends and archaeological evidence suggesting that there might have been contacts between South America and Polynesia.

In 1947, Heyerdahl and five other travelers - Knut Haugland, Bengt Danielsson, Erik Hesselberg, Thorstein Robue and Hermann Watzinger - arrived in Peru, where they built a pae-pae raft from balsa wood and other natural materials, which they called "Kon-Tiki".

On August 7, after 101 days of navigation, the Kon-Tiki, having overcome Pacific Ocean 4300 nautical miles(8000 km), washed up on the reefs of the Raroia atoll of the Tuamotu Islands.

The Kon-Tiki demonstrated that a primitive raft, using the Humboldt Current and a favorable wind, could indeed sail westward across the Pacific Ocean with relative ease and safety. Thanks to the keel system and sail, the raft proved its high maneuverability. In addition, water accumulated in fairly large quantities between the balsa logs, which suggests that ancient sailors could have used it to quench their thirst in the absence of other sources of fresh water. Inspired by the Kon-Tiki voyage, others repeated this journey on their own rafts.

Thor Heyerdahl's book "Kon-Tiki" has been translated into 66 languages. A documentary film about the expedition, filmed by Heyerdahl during the voyage, received 1952 Oscar Award for Best Documentary Feature.

Regarding the linguistic argument, Heyerdahl gave an analogy according to which he prefers to believe that African Americans came from Africa, judging by the color of their skin, and not from England, as one might assume from their speech.

In 1949, Heyerdahl divorced his first wife Liv, with whom he had been married for 12 years (she bore him two sons - Thor Jr. and Bjorn). That same year he married Yvonne Dedekam-Simonsen, and in this marriage they had three daughters - Annette, Marian and Helen Elizabeth. Tour divorced his second wife in 1969 and married for the third time in 1991.

Thor Heyerdahl - expedition to Easter Island

In 1955-1956, Heyerdahl organized the Norwegian archaeological expedition to Easter Island.

The scientific staff of the expedition included Arne Skjolsvold, Carlisle Smith, Edwin Ferdon and William Malloy. Heyerdahl, along with professional archaeologists, spent several months on Easter Island exploring a number of important archaeological sites. The main aspects of the project were experiments in cutting, dragging and installing famous statues moai, as well as excavations on the hills of Orongo and Poike.

Later Heyerdahl supplemented them with a third - "The Art of Easter Island". This expedition laid the foundation for many archaeological surveys that continue on the island to this day. T. Heyerdahl's popular book on this topic, “Aku-Aku,” became another international bestseller.

In the book "Easter Island: Mystery Solved"(Random House, 1989) Heyerdahl proposed a more detailed theory of the island's history. Based on local evidence and archaeological research, he argued that the island was originally inhabited by the “long-eared” from South America, and that the “short-eared” arrived there from Polynesia only in the middle of the 16th century. They may have arrived on the island on their own, or may have been brought as labor.

According to Heyerdahl's theory, something happened on the island between its discovery by Dutch admiral Jacob Roggeveen in 1722 and James Cook's visit there in 1774. If Roggeveen met on the island “completely whites,” Indians, and Polynesians who lived in relative harmony and prosperity, then by Cook’s arrival the population had already decreased significantly, and it consisted mainly of Polynesians living in need.

Based on the oral traditions of local residents and the results of excavations, Heyerdahl suggested that an uprising of the “short-eared” against the ruling “long-eared” took place on the island.

The Long Ears dug a defensive ditch in the eastern part of the island and filled it with flammable materials. During the uprising, Heyerdahl suggests, the “long-ears” set fire to the ditch and retreated beyond it, but the “short-ears” found a workaround, came from the rear and threw all the “long-ears”, except two people, into the fire. Radiocarbon dating of charcoal found during excavations of the “long-eared earth oven” showed that it was about three hundred years ago.

In 1969 and 1970, Thor Heyerdahl built two papyrus boats and attempted to cross the Atlantic Ocean, choosing the coast of Morocco in Africa as the starting point of his voyage. The purpose of the experiment was to demonstrate that ancient sailors could make transatlantic crossings on sailing ships, using the Canary Current.

The first boat named "Ra", designed according to drawings and models of boats of Ancient Egypt, was built by specialists from Lake Chad (Republic of Chad) from papyrus mined from Lake Tana in Ethiopia, and entered the Atlantic Ocean from the coast of Morocco. After several weeks, the Ra began to bend due to design flaws, sink stern into the water, and eventually break into pieces. The crew was forced to abandon the ship.

Next year another boat, "Ra-II", modified taking into account the experience of the previous voyage, was built by craftsmen from Lake Titicaca in Bolivia and also set sail from Morocco, this time crowned with complete success - the boat reached Barbados, thereby demonstrating that ancient sailors could make transatlantic crossings.

Despite the fact that the purpose of the "Ra" voyage was simply to confirm the seaworthiness of ancient ships built from light reeds, the success of the "Ra-II" expedition was regarded as evidence that even in prehistoric times, Egyptian sailors, intentionally or accidentally, could make travel to the New World.

Thor Heyerdahl wrote a book about these expeditions "Expeditions to "Ra"" and a documentary film was created.

In his article “In the Footsteps of the Sun God,” published in the Cairo-based Egyptian Travel Magazine, Thor Heyerdahl wrote: “The similarities between the early civilizations of Egypt and Mexico are not limited to the pyramids... Both Mexico and Egypt had a highly developed system of hieroglyphic writing... Scientists have noted the similarities in fresco painting in temples and tombs, similar temple designs with elaborate megalithic colonnades. It is pointed out that when constructing slab vaults, architects on both sides of the Atlantic did not know the art of constructing a real arch. Attention is drawn to the existence of cyclopean-sized stone human figures, amazing astronomical knowledge and a highly developed calendar system in Mexico and Egypt. Scientists compare the amazingly perfect practice of trephination of the human skull, characteristic of the cultures of the ancient Mediterranean, Mexico and Peru, and also point to a similar Egyptian-Peruvian custom of mummification. These and other numerous evidences of similarities of cultures, taken together, could support the theory that once or more than once ships from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea crossed the Atlantic Ocean and brought the foundations of civilization to the aborigines of Mexico..

Thor Heyerdahl - Tigris

In 1977, Thor Heyerdahl built another reed boat, "Tigris"(this is the name of the Tiger in Latin), the task of which was to demonstrate that trade and migration contacts could exist between Mesopotamia and the Indus civilization represented by modern Pakistan.

Tigris was built in Iraq and set sail with an international crew of 11 on board through Persian Gulf to Pakistan, and from there to the Red Sea.

After about five months of sailing, the Tigris, which retained its seaworthiness, was burned in Djibouti on April 3, 1978 in protest against the wars that broke out in the Red Sea and the Horn of Africa.

In 1983-1984, Thor Heyerdahl also examined mounds found in the Maldives in the Indian Ocean. There he discovered foundations and courtyards oriented to the east, as well as sculptures of bearded sailors with elongated earlobes (“long ears”). And those and others archaeological finds are consistent with the theory of a seafaring civilization originating in modern-day Sri Lanka that settled the Maldives and influenced or even founded the ancient culture of South America and Easter Island. Heyerdahl's discoveries are detailed in his book "Maldivian mystery".

In 1991, Heyerdahl explored the Guimar pyramids on the island of Tenerife and declared that they could not be just mountains of cobblestones, but were indeed pyramids. He also gave opinions on the astronomical orientation of the pyramids. Heyerdahl put forward a theory according to which Canary Islands in ancient times they were a transit point on the route between America and the Mediterranean.

Heyerdahl's latest project is described in his book "Chasing Odin. In the footsteps of our past".

Thor Heyerdahl - In Search of Odin

In 2000, Heyerdahl began excavations in Azov, Rostov region, a city near the Sea of Azov. He tried to find traces of the ancient civilization of Asgard, based on texts and ancient maps presented in Snorri Sturluson's Ynglinga Saga. This saga tells of a chief named Odin leading a tribe called the Æsir north through Saxony to the island of Funen in Denmark, and finally settling in Sweden. There, according to the text of Snorri Sturluson, he made such an impression on the local residents with his varied knowledge that they began to worship him after his death as a god. Heyerdahl suggested that the story told in the Ynglinga Saga was based on real facts.

This project caused sharp criticism in Norway from historians, archaeologists and linguists and was considered pseudoscientific. Heyerdahl was accused of selective use of sources and a complete lack of scientific methodology in his work.

In this book, Heyerdahl based his arguments on the similarity of names in Norse mythology and geographical names Black Sea region - for example, Azov and Ases, Udins and Odin, Tyur and Türkiye. Philologists and historians reject these parallels as accidental, as well as chronological errors: for example, the city of Azov received its name (from the first mention in the found chronicles) 1000 years after, according to Heyerdahl, the Aesir, the inhabitants of Asgard, settled there.

The bitter controversy surrounding the Chasing Odin project was in many ways typical of the relationship between Heyerdahl and academia. His theories rarely received scientific recognition, while Heyerdahl himself rejected scientific criticism and focused on publishing his theories in popular literature intended for the general public.

Heyerdahl was convinced that Norwegians and other Scandinavians in particular could trace their roots to modern Azerbaijan. In the last two decades of his life, he traveled to Azerbaijan several times.

In 1994, he visited Gobustan, where he studied rock paintings. In September 2000, Heyerdahl visited archaeological excavations on the territory of the church in the village of Kish. Today, in front of this church, there is a bust of Heyerdahl. His theory regarding Odin was accepted as fact by the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Norway.

Heyerdahl was an activist in green politics. Heyerdahl's world fame was the reason for his meetings with famous politicians (in particular, during a visit to Cuba he became friends with). He even made a presentation on the importance of environmental protection to the last head of the USSR. Heyerdahl participated annually in the Alternative Nobel Prize as a member of the jury.

In 1994, Heyerdahl and actress Liv Ullmann were chosen by Norway to perform the honor of opening the Winter Olympics in Lillehammer and appeared before a television audience of more than a billion people.

In 1999, his compatriots recognized him as the most famous Norwegian of the 20th century. He was awarded numerous medals and prizes, and was also awarded eleven honorary degrees from universities in America and Europe.

In subsequent years, Heyerdahl was busy with many expeditions and archaeological projects. However, he remained best known for his sea travel by boat and his particular attention to issues of cultural diffusionism.

In 1991, the 77-year-old father of five Heyerdahl married for the third time. His chosen one was the former Miss France 1954 Jacqueline Beer, who was 18 years younger than her husband. Having lived on the Italian Riviera for many years, Heyerdahl moved with his wife to Tenerife.

Heyerdahl died at the age of 87 from a brain tumor at the Colla Micheri estate in the Italian town of Alassio, surrounded by his family - his wife Jacqueline, sons Bjorn, Thor and daughters Marian and Bettina. IN last month life refused to take food and medicine.

In his homeland, a monument was erected to him during his lifetime, and a museum was opened in his house. On January 18, 2011, the modern frigate Thor Heyerdahl (F312), named in honor of the great traveler, entered the Norwegian Navy.

Although much of his work was controversial in scientific circles, Heyerdahl raised public interest in ancient history and the achievements of various cultures and peoples around the world. He also showed that long-distance travel across the ocean was technically possible for Neolithic man. In fact, he was a great practitioner of experimental archaeology. Heyerdahl's books have served as a source of inspiration for several generations of readers.

In 1954, William Willis sailed alone from Peru to American Samoa on a small raft called the Seven Sisters.

In 1954 and 1959 Eduard Ingrish (Czechoslovakia) repeated the Kon-Tiki expedition on the Kantuta rafts.

In 2006, the path of the Kon-Tiki was repeated by a crew of 6 people, which included Heyerdahl’s grandson Olav Heyerdahl. The expedition was called "Tangaroa" and was organized in memory of Thor Heyerdahl with the purpose of conducting observations of the state of the environment in the Pacific Ocean. A film was made about this journey.

In 2015, Norwegian Thorgeir Higraff organized the Kon-Tiki 2 expedition, consisting of 14 people, following in the footsteps of Thor Heyerdahl on two sailing rafts from Peru to Easter Island and back to Chile.

Name: Thor Heyerdahl

Age: 87 years old

Place of Birth: Larvik, Vestfold, Norway

A place of death: Alassio, Liguria, Italy

Activity: Norwegian archaeologist, traveler and writer

Family status: was married to Jacqueline Beer

Thor Heyerdahl - biography

On the emergence of great civilizations scientific world will never stop arguing, since often one theory refutes another. Thor Heyerdahl preferred not to argue, but to act. According to ancient “instructions,” he built a ship and sailed it thousands of miles across the ocean. If he reached the desired shore, the theory was considered proven.

Thor Heyerdahl - studies

Upon graduating from school, young Tur had already determined his future - he would be a zoologist. The boy’s mother worked in an anthropological museum, and he himself assembled a mini-zoo at home, with a viper as the main “exhibit.” Admission to the Faculty of Natural Geography at the University of Oslo in 1933 became a logical continuation of his dream...

Thor Heyerdahl - on the tropical islands

Already finishing his studies, student Heyerdahl went to remote islands Polynesia. There he hoped to find out the origin individual species fauna. His young wife Liv was with him. Having passed Tahiti, the couple landed on desert island Fatu Hiva. He reminded them of the Garden of Eden, in which they felt like Adam and Eve. That's just neighboring islands were inhabited by cannibal natives, and Tour did not part with a gun.

However, the trouble came not from savages, but from a tropical infection. The couple's legs became covered with ulcers, and the couple was forced to seek treatment. medical care on the island of Hiva Oa. Here Heyerdahl met compatriot Henry Lee, and he told him about stone statues in the local jungle. No one knew where they came from. Lee also said that there are similar statues in Colombia, 7 thousand (!) kilometers to the west.

The tour was intrigued: how could this happen? The most logical explanation is that people from South America simply sailed to the Marquesas Islands. The guess was strengthened by the fact that the islanders called one of the idols Tiki, like the god of the Incas. But the scientific world considered the hypothesis complete nonsense. Well, the savages could not build a ship capable of crossing the ocean! In search of evidence for his theory, 25-year-old Heyerdahl came to British Columbia (Canada).

He expected to find legends about seafarers among the local Indians. However, having traveled all over western Canada, I have not heard a single legend about Indian sailors. But I learned something else, and soon presented to the public an article about contacts between peoples Pacific Islands and American Indians. In it, the Norwegian substantiated his conclusion that the ancestors of the Polynesians arrived precisely from the north, through Hawaii.

There, in Canada, Heyerdahl was caught by the Second World War. Being a patriot, Tur enlisted in the Allied army and ended up in a sabotage radio school in Britain. As part of a sea convoy, his unit was transferred to Murmansk, from where the fighters were supposed to go to the Norwegian Kirkenes.

Having studied Heyerdahl's documents, the NKVD officer was surprised: on the shoulders of the soldier, who was listed as a sergeant, there were lieutenant stars. Disorder! Without listening to explanations, the “special officer” sent the suspicious blond back to London. And the unit in which Tur served was destroyed by the Nazis during the first mission... Subsequently, the researcher mentally thanked the meticulous Russian, who unwittingly saved his life.

After the war, Heyerdahl came to New York, where he presented his work on the resettlement of American Indians to the Polynesian islands. As he foresaw, none of the academicians paid attention to his article. True, someone advised me to prove by my own example the possibility of such a journey. Considering that Heyerdahl, having miraculously avoided drowning as a child, was terrified of water, he had to refuse. Instead, the Tour began to prepare for sailing.

On April 28, 1947, Heyerdahl and five companions departed on a raft from the Peruvian port of Callao and headed for Polynesia. The raft consisted of balsa wood logs and was called “Kon-Tiki” - named after the hero of Polynesian legends. The design was identical to those built in ancient times. After 101 days of exhausting sailing, covering 4,300 nautical miles, the travelers reached the Tuamotu Islands. A theory that no one took seriously has been proven.

One of the academicians tried to devalue Tour's achievement, saying that even before him it was known about the migration of the ancestors of the Polynesians from Asia. But it was the Tour that proved that before that they had visited America, located thousands of miles to the east. Already in the 21st century, a DNA analysis of Polynesians and South American Indians was carried out, which showed a high degree of relatedness between these ethnic groups.

The researcher organized a new expedition to Easter Island. Here he was interested in famous idols. Who put these bulky sculptures here and why? And although Tur did not give a complete answer to this question, he found out that stone heads- continuation of bodies buried in the ground. In addition, he found previously unknown idols and ruins of buildings that strongly resembled pre-Inca structures in South America...

Having passed his half-century anniversary, Heyerdahl still could not imagine himself outside of science. As a result of much thought, he came to another sensational conclusion: the ancient Indians and Egyptians sailed to visit each other! And again I decided to make the journey on a ship from an ancient era.

Tur ordered the vessel from Egyptian craftsmen. They recreated it using ancient drawings and drawings from 12 tons of papyrus. Although the Egyptian Papyrus Institute warned that the stems would begin to disintegrate in salt water, the Norwegian believed more in the masters of the past. The ship was named "Ra", in honor of the Egyptian sun god.

For the new campaign, Heyerdahl recruited an international team. The future leader of the “Travelers Club” became the expedition doctor. In the spring of 1969, "Ra" under the UN flag set sail from the port of Safi in Morocco. In 8 weeks, the ship traveled 5 thousand kilometers, but did not reach the finish line: “Ra” in salt water, as scientists had warned, began to fall apart. The crew was saved from certain death by a passing yacht.

Heyerdahl did not give up. Less than a year later, with the same crew and from the same point, the papyrus boat “Ra-2” left. This time the ship was built by specialists from the Aymara tribe from Lake Titicaca (Bolivia). After 57 days, Ra-2, having defeated the Atlantic, finished off the island of Barbados. Heyerdahl was right.

Tour soon decided that Egypt had connections not only with America, but also with India. To test this assumption, he ordered a reed ship "Tigris" from craftsmen from Iraq - an exact copy of an ancient Sumerian ship. Leaving the Iraqi port of Shatt al-Arab, the Tigris crossed the Persian Gulf and entered Indian Ocean and approached the mouth of the Indus in Pakistan. The theory was again confirmed by practice. The 5-month voyage of the Tigris ended on April 3, 1978 in Djibouti: in protest against the war between Ethiopia and Somalia, the crew burned the ship.

Heyerdahl's last guess

In the spring of 2001, 87-year-old Thor Heyerdahl flew to Rostov-on-Don. This was not an idle journey: he wanted to find evidence for his theory that the ancestors of the Scandinavians were the Udins, one of the ethnic minorities of Azerbaijan. From them, according to the researcher, comes the name of the highest deity of the Vikings, Odin. The scientist believed that they walked north precisely through the Don steppes.

This time he did not have time to prove that he was right: he was already seriously ill. Despite this. The tour amazed others with its efficiency. “I worked late. The light in his room was on until two o'clock in the morning. And at half past seven in the morning he was already on his feet,” recalled translator Evgeniy Vitkovsky. “First I walked in front of the hotel, then returned to my room - took a cold shower, did exercises, had breakfast and went to the excavations...”

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