While we know Thor Heyerdahl mostly for his famous KonTiki expedition, in relation to the Eterna KonTiki’s history, the Norwegian ethnologist was also known for several other adventures he embarked on.

Born in Larvik, Norway in 1914, Heyerdahl studied zoology and geography at the University of Oslo, after graduation moving to Polynesia – which sparked his interest in what became his first expedition. This was his trip from Peru to Polynesia on the KonTiki raft he made in 1947. Interestingly, although Heyerdahl set out to prove that ancient civilizations from South America could reach Polynesia, intending his trip to be proof, most of his work is not accepted by the scientific community.

In the late 1960s, Thor Heyerdahl became interested in another journey. This time he looked East, to Egypt, intended on proving that it was possible for early African civilizations to have influenced or come into contact with their Latin American counterparts. He had a model of an Egyptian reed boat built called the ‘Ra’, and with a crew of 7 tried to make the trip from Safi, Morocco. However, issues with the design of the boat forced them to hire a new shipbuilder; the Aymaros of Lake Titicaca, who built the ‘Ra II’. With the same crew the following year, in 1970, Heyerdahl successfully made the crossing from Safi to Barbados in just under 2 months.

What appears to be the first Ra model experiencing issues

Finally, Heyerdahl’s last famous expedition, this time in the late 1970s, was the ‘Tigris’ – again in a reed craft. This was a 6,400 km journey starting in Iraq, in the Tigris River, and ending in the Red Sea after crossing the Arabian Sea. This time the goal was to show that Sumerians could have dispersed their own culture throughout the Middle East, using similar means.

In all, while not necessarily part of the anthropological body of work Heyerdahl may have been targeting, Thor Heyerdahl is still remembered for these expeditions and his documenting of them. Both through film and through his many books. The kinds of stories that make up the body of what we often refer to as watch history – the military engagements, mountain treks, and deep sea dives that the vintage timepieces we admire were used for in the past.

By: Andres Ibarguen