I was just a fifth grader when I discovered, quite by chance, a stack of very intriguing books on the back counter of my teacher’s classroom. The books were a class set of Kon-Tiki, an internationally well-known memoir authored by Norwegian archeologist and explorer Thor Heyerdahl.
The original Kon-Tiki raft constructed by Norwegian explorer and archeologist Thor Heyerdahl. He and six others daringly sailed the raft 4,300 nautical miles of open sea from Peru to Polynesia in 1947. Photo Credit: Terry Lee Marzell
The front cover depicted a photo of a group of men bravely riding out a storm at sea on a primitive raft. The situation appeared precarious, as the waves were high and the raft was nearly submerged. Flipping the book over to read the summary on the back cover, I learned that the volume described a daring adventure by Heyerdahl and five others—modern-day adventurers. On April 28, 1947, the group of men sailed from Peru on a raft they built from balsa wood, bamboo, and hemp. After three months and 4,300 nautical miles on the open sea, they finally sighted land. The next year Heyerdahl published his account of that daring voyage. Translated into sixty-five languages, Kon-Tiki became a classic, inspirational story of modern-day daring and courage—a saga of mere mortals and their triumph against the power of the untamed sea.
My fifth grade teacher never assigned this book to our class. In fact, she never even mentioned Thor Heyerdahl or his explorations to us. Over the decades that have passed since I left elementary school, I’ve barely given a thought to the book or the explorer I briefly discovered in elementary school. That is, not until earlier this month, when I unexpectedly found myself standing in front of Heyerdahl’s actual, real-life Kon-Tiki, housed in a maritime museum located in Oslo, Norway. Instantly transported back in time to my fifth grade year, I was once again intrigued by the story of this amazing explorer and scientist.
The author Terry Lee Marzell examines the original Kon-Tiki raft and other exhibits at the Kon-Tiki Museum in Oslo, Norway. Photo Credit: Hal Marzell
My first impression was that the Kon-Tiki was much larger than I previously envisioned. When you hear the word “raft,” you picture something about the size of a dining room area rug. By contrast, the Kon-Tiki is an impressive 45′ x 18′, with an incorporated cabin that measures 14′ x 8′, and a mast that is 29′ in height. I suddenly realized that if you were going to travel 4,300 miles across the Pacific Ocean, with food and water and other necessary supplies for six men, you would need a raft bigger than an area rug!
My second thought was how delicate the Kon-Tiki appeared to be. Remember that today, the raft is 77 years old, and it has survived a 101-day oceanic voyage, not to mention it crashed on a reef in Raroia in the Tutamotu Islands, and then was towed back to port. Furthermore, the raft was originally constructed of split bamboo over lightweight balsa wood logs that were lashed together with hemp ropes. The cabin was constructed from plaited bamboo and roofed with banana leaves. Materials chosen because they are lightweight and sturdy, but ocean-worthy? I would personally be reluctant to would trust them.
But wait! There’s more! The museum also houses Heyerdah’s reed boat, the Ra II. This vessel was constructed of papyrus and was launched from Morocco in an attempt to cross the Atlantic Ocean. In addition, there are exhibits that detail stories about the famous scientist’s journey to Fatu Hiva, together with his wife, Liv; expeditions to the Galapagos and Easter Island; and details about the explorer’s Tigris voyage. The museum is a treasure trove of information about this amazing archeologist and scientist.
You can learn more about Thor Heyerdahl, view more photos of his raft, and explore the Kon-Tiki Museum with your students at this official maritime museum website.
