Thor Heyerdahl

Thor Heyerdahl (1914-2002) - Norwegian archaeologist, traveler and writer. Researcher of the culture and origin of various peoples of the world: Polynesians, Indians and inhabitants of Easter Island. Made some risky journeys on replicas of ancient boats.

There are many interesting facts in the biography of Thor Heyerdahl, which we will talk about in this article.

So, before you is a short biography of Heyerdahl.

Biography of Thor Heyerdahl

Thor Heyerdahl was born on October 6, 1914 in the Norwegian city of Larvik. He grew up in the family of the owner of the brewery Thor Heyerdahl and his wife Alison, who worked in the anthropological museum.

Childhood and youth

As a child, Thor knew Darwin's theory of evolution well and had a keen interest in zoology. It is curious that at his home he even created a kind of museum, where the viper was the central exhibit.

It is worth noting that the child was terrified of water, since he almost drowned twice. Heyerdahl admitted that if in his youth someone had told him that he would swim in the ocean on a makeshift boat, he would have considered such a person insane.

Tour was able to overcome his fear at the age of 22. This happened after his accidental fall into the river, from which he still managed to swim ashore.

In 1933, Heyerdahl successfully passed the exams at the capital university, choosing the natural-geographical department. It was here that he began to deeply study the history and culture of ancient peoples.

Travels

While studying at the university, Tour met the traveler Bjorn Krepelin, who lived for some time in Tahiti. He had a large library and a large collection of items brought from Polynesia. Thanks to this, Heyerdahl was able to re-read many books related to the history and culture of the region.

While still a student, Tour participated in a project that aimed to explore and visit the remote Polynesian islands. The expedition members had to find out how modern animals managed to find themselves there.

In 1937, Heyerdahl traveled to the Marquesas Islands with his young wife. The couple crossed the Atlantic Ocean, passed through the Panama Canal and after passing through the Pacific Ocean reached the coast of Tahiti.

Here the travelers settled in the home of the local chief, who taught them the art of survival in the natural environment. After about a month, the newlyweds moved to the island of Fatu Hiva, where they stayed for about a year away from civilization.

Initially, they had no doubt that they could live in the wild for a long time. But over time, bloody ulcers began to appear on the spouses' legs. Fortunately, on a neighboring island, they managed to find a doctor who provided medical assistance to them.

The events that took place with Thor Heyerdahl on the Marquesas Islands are described in his first autobiographical book "In Search of Paradise", published in 1938. Then he left for Canada to study the life of the native Indians. In this country he was found by the Second World War (1939-1945).

Heyerdahl was among the first to volunteer for the front. In Great Britain, he trained as a radio operator, after which he participated with the allied forces in the fight against the Nazis. An interesting fact is that he rose to the rank of lieutenant.

After the end of the war, Tour continued to engage in scientific activities, having studied a huge number of different documents. As a result, he hypothesized that Polynesia was populated by people from America, and not from Southeast Asia, as previously thought.

Heyerdahl's bold assumption drew a lot of criticism in society. To prove his case, the guy decided to assemble an expedition. Together with 5 travelers, he went to Peru.

Here the men built a raft, calling it "Kon-Tiki". It is important to note that they used only those materials that were available to "ancient" people. After that, they went out to the Pacific Ocean and after 101 days of sailing reached the Tuamotu Island. It is curious that during this time they covered about 8000 km on their raft!

Thus, Thor Heyerdahl and his associates proved that on a makeshift raft, using the Humboldt current and the wind, it is relatively easy to cross the ocean and land on the Polynesian islands.

This is exactly what Heyerdahl said and the ancestors of the Polynesians did, as mentioned in the manuscripts of the Spanish conquerors. The Norwegian described his journey in the book "Kon-Tiki", which was translated into 66 languages of the world.

During the biography of 1955-1956. The tour explored Easter Island. There he, together with experienced archaeologists, conducted a series of experiments related to the dragging and installation of moai statues. The man shared the results of the work done in the book "Aku-Aku", which was sold in millions of copies.

In 1969-1970. Heyerdahl built 2 papyrus boats to cross the Atlantic Ocean. This time, he sought to prove that ancient sailors could make transatlantic voyages on sailing ships, using the Canary Current for this.

The first boat, named "Ra", made from images and models of ancient Egyptian boats, sailed into the Atlantic Ocean from Morocco. However, due to a number of technical errors, "Ra" soon broke apart.

After that, a new boat was built - "Ra-2", which had a more improved design. As a result, Thur Heyerdahl managed to safely reach the coast of Barbados and thereby prove the truth of his words.

In the spring of 1978, travelers burned the reed ship Tigris to protest the war in the Red Sea region. In this way, Heyerdahl tried to draw the attention of the leaders of the UN and all mankind to the fact that our civilization could burn out and go to the bottom like this boat.

Later, the traveler took up the study of the mounds found in the Maldives. He discovered found the foundations of ancient structures, as well as statues of bearded sailors. He described his research in The Maldives Mystery.

In 1991, Thor Heyerdahl studied the Guimar pyramids on the island of Tenerife, claiming that they were indeed pyramids and not just piles of rubble. He suggested that in antiquity, the Canary Islands could have been a staging post between America and the Mediterranean.

At the beginning of the new millennium, Tour went to Russia. He tried to find evidence that his compatriots came to the territory of modern Norway, from the Azov coast. He researched ancient maps and legends, and also participated in archaeological excavations.

Heyerdahl had no doubt that Scandinavian roots can be traced in modern Azerbaijan, where he has traveled more than once. Here he studied rock carvings and tried to find ancient artifacts, confirming his hypothesis.

Personal life

Tour's first wife was the economist Liv Cusheron-Thorpe, whom he met while still a student. In this marriage, the couple had two boys - Tour and Bjorn.

Initially, there was a complete idyll between the spouses, but later their feelings began to cool down. Heyerdahl's relationship with Yvonne Dedekam-Simonsen led to Tour's final divorce from Liv.

After that, the man officially legalized his relationship with Yvonne, who gave birth to three girls - Anette, Marian and Helen Elizabeth. It is curious that his wife accompanied her husband on many expeditions. However, in 1969 this marriage broke up.

In 1991, 77-year-old Heyerdahl went down the aisle for the third time. His wife turned out to be 59-year-old Jacqueline Bier, who at one time was Miss France 1954. The traveler lived with her until the end of his days.

In 1999, Tour's compatriots recognized him as the most famous Norwegian of the 20th century. He has received many different awards and 11 prestigious degrees from American and European universities.

Death

Thor Heyerdahl died on April 18, 2002 at the age of 87. The cause of his death was a brain tumor. Shortly before his death, he refused to take medicine and food.