Expedition Tour Heyerdal
In 1947, the Norwegian Thor Heyerdahl on the Kon-Tiki raft sailed from the Peruvian port of Callao to the Polynesian islands of Tuamotu, which confirmed his hypothesis about the possibility of the settlement of Polynesian islands by immigrants from South America.
In order to prove that ancient seafarers, in particular the Egyptians, had the opportunity to undertake trans-Atlantic voyages, in 1968, Heyerdahl began preparations for an expedition on a papyrus boat, which was made by experts in boat mock-ups of ancient Egypt.
It was named after the Egyptian sun god, the 15-meter “Ra” sailed from the coast of Morocco on May 25, 1969, but after 54 days, having covered more than 5000 kilometers, it broke in half and sank a few kilometers from the Caribbean islands.
The following year, according to the same drawings, but taking into account the design flaws identified, Aymara tribe specialists from the coast of the Bolivian lake Titicaca built Ra-II - they used papyrus from the Ethiopian Lake Tana again, but made a boat 3 meters shorter and 4 times lighter than “Ra.”
"Ra-II" sailed from the Moroccan city of Safi on May 17, 1970 under the UN flag with a crew of 7 navigators, specially assembled from representatives of different countries, races and religions. Despite the fact that two of them had navigational skills on sailing ships, in 57 days the Ra-II traveled 6,100 kilometers. On July 12, she reached the island of Barbados, which confirmed Heyerdahl’s theory about the possibility of crossing the Atlantic Ocean using primitive means, using the Canary Course.
Based on the materials of both voyages, Thor Heyerdahl published the book “Expeditions to Ra,” which became a bestseller. A documentary filmed by Italian team member Carlo Mauri was nominated for an Oscar in 1972.
The original Ra-II boat was lost and today two of his replicas are exhibited in the Kon-Tiki Museum in Oslo and in the hall of the ancient shipbuilding of the National Park Güímar Pyramids on the island of Tenerife, which was opened in 1998 on the initiative and at the financial support Heyerdahl.
In order to prove that ancient seafarers, in particular the Egyptians, had the opportunity to undertake trans-Atlantic voyages, in 1968, Heyerdahl began preparations for an expedition on a papyrus boat, which was made by experts in boat mock-ups of ancient Egypt.
It was named after the Egyptian sun god, the 15-meter “Ra” sailed from the coast of Morocco on May 25, 1969, but after 54 days, having covered more than 5000 kilometers, it broke in half and sank a few kilometers from the Caribbean islands.
Photo © jnsm.com.ua
The following year, according to the same drawings, but taking into account the design flaws identified, Aymara tribe specialists from the coast of the Bolivian lake Titicaca built Ra-II - they used papyrus from the Ethiopian Lake Tana again, but made a boat 3 meters shorter and 4 times lighter than “Ra.”
"Ra-II" sailed from the Moroccan city of Safi on May 17, 1970 under the UN flag with a crew of 7 navigators, specially assembled from representatives of different countries, races and religions. Despite the fact that two of them had navigational skills on sailing ships, in 57 days the Ra-II traveled 6,100 kilometers. On July 12, she reached the island of Barbados, which confirmed Heyerdahl’s theory about the possibility of crossing the Atlantic Ocean using primitive means, using the Canary Course.
Based on the materials of both voyages, Thor Heyerdahl published the book “Expeditions to Ra,” which became a bestseller. A documentary filmed by Italian team member Carlo Mauri was nominated for an Oscar in 1972.
The original Ra-II boat was lost and today two of his replicas are exhibited in the Kon-Tiki Museum in Oslo and in the hall of the ancient shipbuilding of the National Park Güímar Pyramids on the island of Tenerife, which was opened in 1998 on the initiative and at the financial support Heyerdahl.
