Posted by Maskin from Harvard by Harvard ! on July 17, 2004 at 13:02:58:
In Reply to: Re: The 'PETER AHCHING THEORY' on POLYNESIAN ORIGINS. Copyright 2003. posted by Eric on February 25, 2004 at 17:03:59:
Across the Pacific in 100 Days
The Kon-Tiki Expedition
by Alexander Maskin
In 1947, Thor Heyerdahl built a raft out of balsa wood and set out on a 4,300-mile journey to prove that Polynesia could have been settled by people from the western coast of South America. Despite the success of his remarkable journey, his conclusions were not embraced by the scientific community.
maskin@fas.harvard.edu
Fifty years ago, a remarkable sea faring journey occurred across the Pacific Ocean. Bound for Polynesia from Peru, it was not simply avoyage for fun, it was a scientific expedition based on an anthropologicalhypothesis about the origin of human civilization in those islands. Theidea behind the voyage was simple. Thor Heyerdahl, a Norwegian explorerand anthropologist, believed that Polynesia was settled not by people fromsoutheast Asia through Indonesia (as was commonly believed), but from thewestern coast of South America. Heyerdahl had previously spent timestudying many indigenous people in South America, North America, andPolynesia and he knew that simply presenting theories to the greaterscientific community would not change their view. Hence, he decided thatin essence, actions speak louder than words. To prove that such a voyagewas possible, he and five other scientists built a boat out of balsa wood,adhered only to materials that ancient peoples would have had access to,and carried only what were essential items for their trip. The raftKon-Tiki was subsequently built and was designed to carry six men 4300miles across the Pacific Ocean from Peru to Polynesia. The name Kon-Tikicomes from the mythical sun king who the Incas claim built the enormousstone constructions near Lake Titicaca before he was defeated in war bylocal tribes. The Peruvian prefix 'Kon' means Sun. According to legend,he fled with his light-colored people down to the coast and then westwardinto the Pacific Ocean, never again to return to Peru. Throughout thePolynesian islands, Tiki is remembered as the mythical hero who was firstin the line of aboriginal chiefs to settle the islands and to claim directdescent from the sun. (1)
There was no dispute among anthropologists as to how people colonizedthe Americas. The Bering land bridge between the northeasternmost cornerof Russia and Alaska was generally viewed as the means of travel. ThePolynesian islands were a mystery though. It was known that they weresettled in two times, around A.D. 500 and A.D. 1000. Most scholarsbelieved that people traveled from mainland China and through Indonesia tothe Islands, Heyerdahl believed otherwise. His studies led him to supposethat early people traveled across the Pacific using boats constructed forthis purpose. (1) The use of a boat similar to the Kon-Tiki was notunheard of. Detailed accounts gleaned from early Spanish explorers talkedof Peruvians greeting them in balsa wood rafts. These rafts hadcentreboards and sails that were used to harness the wind. Although whendiscovered, the Peruvians used the rafts primarily near the coast andsailing on Lake Titicaca, they were nevertheless prominent means of travelfor early people. (2)
The port of Callao, Peru was busy in 1947. A prominent navy base, itwas populated with many civilians as well, many of whom must have beenwondering what five Norwegians and a Swedish man could possibly be doingwith nine huge balsa tree trunks. Bets were even made as to how long itwould take for the sailors to be rescued. (1) But the men wereconstructing the vessel according to what early people would have hadaccess to and when it was completed, the voyagers had a remarkably soundcraft to sea with. Heyerdahl relates how the raft was made. 'The ninebalsa logs were lashed together side by side with many separate pieces ofhemp rope. The bow of the raft featured an organ-pipe design, with thelongest log in the middle measuring 45 feet and projecting beyond theothers both in the front and in the stern. In the stern it supported abig chunk of the balsa holding tholepins for the steering oar. Of thetwo-foot cross section of these logs, more than half was submerged in thewater, but nine smaller crossbeams of light balsa covered with bamboolifted the highest portion of the deck (including the floor of the openhut upon which we [the explorers] slept) eighteen inches above the sea.The little plaited bamboo hut with thatched roof, two hardwood masts sideby side, with a square sail, five centerboards two feet wide and six feetdeep, inserted at irregular intervals between the logs, and a long woodensteering oar astern completed our replica of the colorful historic craft.'(1)
On the Kon-Tiki with Heyerdahl were Herman Watzinger, (in charge oftesting, and hydrographic and meteorologic measurements) Erik Hesselberg,(responsible for plotting the drift) Knut Haugland and Torstein Raaby,(radio operators) and Bengt Danielsson (a Swedish ethnologist). Theradios were only used for recording observations, and in the case of anemergency to radio for help. Soon, the men had left the port and wereusing the Humboldt Current to push off into the ocean. Life the first fewweeks were hard. One man became seasick, while the others were learninghow to steer to effectively utilize the predominant westerly winds. A fewweeks after they had been in the ocean, sailing became easier, as thewide, blue ocean became sprinkled with whitecaps and the seas becamecalmer. The men fished for various types of shark and fish to survive.Additionally, they brought along a rubber dinghy that was attached to theboat. Through this, they were able to make pictures of the Kon-Tiki andgenerally relax off the main raft. Sextants were used to plot how far themen had traveled from day to day, and plankton was used for foodexperimentation. The men analyzed sea water and found that mixing up to40% of salt water could be mixed with the supply of fresh water and stillbe good for drinking. They also transported of over 200 coconuts andPeruvian food plants to prove that they could be carried on a raft acrossthe ocean without loss of germinating power. As Heyerdahl said, 'theseprehistoric food plants could never have drifted across the ocean withoutthe aid and care of human hands, and the aboriginal name for sweet potatowas KumaraQboth in Peru and on the Polynesian islands.' (1)
After three months, Polynesian birds starting visiting the ships, andcertain clouds signaling islands were spotted. The first island to besighted was the atoll of Puka-puka, but the raft floated right by itbecause of the prevailing western current. It was impossible to turn theboat around, since no advanced steering mechanism was present. After 97days, another island was spotted, and natives to the island were seen aswell. This time, the islanders used their canoes to paddle out to theraft, and although they tried to turn the course of the raft, strong windsprevented the Kon-Tiki from landing at that island, Angatau. The nextday, to the sailors consternation, they soon sighted land off thedangerous Raroia Atoll of the Tuamoto Islands, with its 20-mile reef. Theocean at this point, crashed into the reef with alarming fury, and thevoyagers were sailing right towards it. The men vowed to hang on to theraft at all costs, and although water railed around Kon-Tiki, the men wereable to stay upon it and eventually, the hard charging reef deposited themen in a calm lagoon. A week later, the men were rescued by nearbyislanders who had seen the campfires and an official French Governmentship soon picked the sailors up. After 4300 miles and 101 days of sailingacross the Pacific Ocean, the men had completed their amazing journey. (1)
Heyerdahl's journey proved that trans-oceanic travel was possible, butscholars not accept his arguments as to how people settled the Polynesianislands. One of the primary criticisms was that while Heyerdahl's voyagewas possible it was improbable. Lowell Holmes furthered this idea bynoting that the people who lived in western South America at the time ofthe supposed voyage had no incentive to travel. Heyerdahl ascribed histime period of migration around A.D. 500, but at the time in Peru, the'Incas [Peruvians] developed within the valley of the Cuzco and the wholecycle of their mythology contains not even the slightest suggestion of anytribal migrations outside of the Andean region.' (5) Furthermore,Heyerdahl stated that the actual people who had done the oceanic travelhad built extensive stone structures in Peru, but it had been proven thatthe first stone buildings had not developed until A.D. 1000. Lastly,Heyerdahl in his book Kon-Tiki described a race of 'white' people who didthe trans-pacific crossing (people sighted by Europeans in the area), butrealistically the only civilization close to the 'white' people did notexist until A.D. 1150. (5) Heyerdahl knew before his voyage what his goalwas, Polynesia 4300 miles away. From a realistic standpoint, it seemsillogical for American Indians to just sail off into the unknown Pacific,when they had no clue as to where they would end up.
Contrastly, the main conclusive evidence for Heyerdahl's theory seemsto fall in the realm of botany. The sweet potato found in Polynesia isalmost certainly that of the South American type and could have beentransported to Polynesia by voyagers. And conversely, coconut,breadfruit, plaintain, taro, yam, paper mulberry, arrowroot, and turmericwere Polynesian plants brought to the New World (and while not impossible,the probability that a coconut for example, could have floated across theocean and have germinated in Polynesia is exceedingly small). (5)
But from a anthropological position however, Heyerdahl's theories canbe refuted in three critical areas: racial composition, speech, andbuilding construction. If Heyerdahl's theory about migration were true,Polynesians would only be racially composed of Caucasoid and Mongoloidstock, or those people who had made the trip over the land bridge. Butdistinct Negroid elements are seen in Polynesians raising questions aboutOceanic Negro populations migrating eastward from Africa, Peruvians onlyhave Asiatic stock in their composition. (5) Heyerdahl noted that one ofthe remarkable similarities between the New World and Polynesia are theirpredominantly linked blood type frequencies. But Europeans played a largepart in this, both when they arrived in South America and also in theirmany trading ventures in the South Pacific. Furthermore, these frequenciesmay coincide by chance in disparate races. (6)
Linguistically, South American Peruvians are unrelated to Polynesians.In the South Pacific, there are many languages commonly referred to as theMalayo-Polynesian stock. Scholars have noted that all of the distinctlanguages found in this region have derived from one common language.This language may have originated from the New World, but it seems morelikely that the languages came from Eastern Polynesia, and from Indonesia.(5)
Heyerdahl's Kon-Tiki theory also incorporates the use of sculpture as abasis for similarities between the cultures. It relates how massive stonestructures in Polynesia are similar or the same as in Peru. Butinvestigations into these similarities between the two cultures prove thatthis correlation is only coincidental. An example that Heyerdahl gave wasthe construction of pyramids in both areas. While it is true that bothPeruvians and Polynesians eventually constructed pyramids, it should benoted that ancient Egyptians had pyramids as well. It can be inferredthat the structure of pyramids was related to the innate stability of thepyramid as a building, and not information transferred across an ocean.(5)
The sailors of the Kon-Tiki also had several advantages over theancient Peruvians that supposedly completed the same trip. During theinitial part of the voyage, the prevailing winds would carry a craft northtowards the Galapagos islands, not west. (5) Heyerdahl's boat was tuggedby a ship out past these drifts, thus facilitating its trip across theocean. Critics also noted that the Kon-Tiki was a type of craft developedafter the Europeans visited South America. South Americans used paddlesinitially, not sails. And lastly, Heyerdahl used many things that ancienttravelers did not have access to, such as canned food, solar stills fordrinking water, navigational instruments (sextants) and maps. RobertSuggs summarily dismisses the voyage: '[it] was not a fair test of thesailing ability of the ancient Peruvians by any means and proved onlythis: that by using a modern, Post-European-contact type of sailraft withnavigation aids and modern survival equipment, men can survive a 101-dayvoyage between Peru and Polynesia.' (6)
So what are we supposed to make of the Kon-Tiki voyage? We cancertainly appreciate that the voyage made was a remarkable feat,something that could have possibly proved a theory. Thor Heyerdahlpublished his book Kon-Tiki to worldwide acclaim and it stirred the mindsof many people, including scientists. But questions about its scientificvalidity soon turned into an intense debate, as scholars doubted thatancient mariners would have made a 4300 mile trip across the world'slargest ocean just to colonize unknown islands far away. Questions aboutthe scientific results became apparent, and much of the scientificcommunity still held firm to the belief that Polynesia was settled byAsians, not Americans. Heyerdahl adventurous spirit had not beensatisfied, however. He made two voyages on the Ra and Ra II from thewestern tip of Morocco to south America, his trip on the Tigris entailedsailing from Egypt to Southeast Asia and India. Thor Heyerdahl captivatedthe minds of many explorers through his travels. Sailing across thePacific Ocean on a raft is no small feat. But he failed to gainacceptance in the scientific community because his ideas ultimately didnot withstand rigorous scrutiny. Fantasy became blurred with reality andin the end, Heyerdahl's ideas were deemed improbable. Heyerdahl drew toomany parallels: after making similar observations in two differentregions of the world, he concluded that they were necessarily linked. Fewscientists took Heyerdahl seriously, and in the end the greater body ofscience deemed his ideas unscientific.
Now you know !