THE NORTHWEST CONNECTION
By David Gallagher
Originally published in Pacific Yachting, September 2002
August 7, 1947 — Six ragged, leathery Scandinavians wade ashore the tiny South Pacific island of Raroia. The men are unkempt, with tanned skin and rough beards, and their bodies have been battered by the elements. They have been at sea, that much is clear. For how long and for how far is a mystery to the islanders who greet them. The raft they’ve wrecked on the island’s reef was made of huge logs and built in a style unfamiliar to the Polynesians; these men must have traveled the Pacific for a very long time indeed.
This scene was the climax of the now-famous Kon-Tiki Expedition. Many people have heard of the Kon-Tiki and of her captain Thor Heyerdahl, but few know of the Northwest Coast’s pivotal role in Heyerdahl’s theories on the movement of ancient peoples throughout the Pacific. In fact, Heyerdahl suggested that this region was not only the entry point for ancient peoples into what we now call the “New World”, but also acted as a stepping stone for travelers headed further south and west towards Polynesia.
Norwegian scientist Thor Heyerdahl had conceived of Kon-Tiki one night in Polynesia, while on an expedition to study the flora and fauna of the Marquesas Islands. He noted that while traditional scientific thought assumed that Polynesia was settled by Asiatic groups coming from Micronesia and Indonesia, a study of native agricultural plants pointed east, towards the Americas.
Likewise, ruins on many Polynesian islands were strikingly similar to ancient structures in South America. Unlike traditional Polynesian construction that used bamboo, palm leaves, and other easily-gathered natural materials, these ancient ruins were built of giant stone blocks quarried and shaped to fit snugly together. Similar stone structures have been found in Peru. Could ancient explorers from the Americas have populated the islands of Polynesia? The Kon-Tiki Expedition was conceived as the ultimate test of Heyerdahl’s theory. It was a simple question that addressed a deceptively complex problem.
Heyerdahl theorized that ancient peoples were far more advanced sailors than previously thought possible, and that the seas of the world, rather than creating barriers to movement, offered these people a means to travel the globe with great success.
By studying cultural similarities among greatly disparate groups, and by watching carefully the actual physical realities of the sea, including wind direction, prevailing currents, and the real distances involved when sailing the globe, Heyerdahl built this theory over the course of sixty years of research. He was deeply entrenched in a camp of scientists called ‘Diffusionists’, who propose that there was contact between the ancient cultures of the world.
It is commonly -- and mistakenly -- believed that Heyerdahl suggested that Polynesia was populated by American Indians. While he did point out many cultural similarities that existed between Polynesia and the Americas which suggest an older migration from South America, Heyerdahl acknowledged that the mass of physical and cultural evidence pointed to a later Asian origin for modern Polynesians. In this respect, he agreed with the commonly held source for a Polynesian migration. He merely differed on the route taken. Heyerdahl argued that in order to get to the islands of the South Pacific from Asia, the easiest, quickest, and most likely route was by way of the Americas, and by way of the Northwest Coast region of North America in particular.
THE POLYNESIAN PROBLEM
The question of just how Polynesia was first populated has been a problem for anthropologists ever since Europeans discovered the islands. In fact, every inhabitable island in the Pacific shows signs of an early human population, some as far back as the Stone Age. This becomes a real dilemma when one considers the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean and the distances between islands. Heyerdahl himself viewed this plain fact as evidence of a great ancient seafaring culture.
“The fact that Stone Age people had built their homes on all of these islands before they were found by Europeans,” said Heyerdahl, “is an amazing feat that dwarfs the European discovery of the American continent on the other side of the narrow Atlantic.”
Early in European dealings with Polynesians, two theories emerged on how ancient groups reached these remote islands. One theory proposed that Polynesia was populated by island-hopping tribes over relatively small stretches of sea, from Indonesia or Micronesia in the west. Linguistic similarities were often cited as proof of this west to east expansion. Indeed, Micronesia, Malaysia, and Indonesia all seem to have been populated directly from Asia in the west.
The second theory, suggested first by sea captains who had direct contact with native people in both Polynesia and the Americas, held that Polynesia was settled by migration from east to west. These sailors knew that to approach Polynesia by ship, one must sail from the northeast, following prevailing currents and winds. It was a fact that was well-known to all European explorers of the time. The prevailing winds and Pacific currents made a straight shot at Polynesia from Asia nearly impossible.
As time went by, the cultural and biological observations of these explorers carried less and less weight. They were, argued the linguists, sailors after all and not real scientists. A colonial mindset surely helped to settle the problem. It was easy for the Europeans of the time to believe that no native tribes were sophisticated enough to mount extended sea voyages. A direct Asian origin became the accepted ‘solution’ to the Polynesian problem until the mid-twentieth century.
But the evidence is not at all straightforward. Botany and zoology provide some tantalizing clues that the theory of expansion into Polynesia from Asia in the west is not the whole story, and may perhaps be outright wrong. When the first Europeans found the islands of Polynesia, the sweet potato had already been introduced and was commonly grown for food, just as it was in South America. At the time, this food was unknown in Southeast Asia. Also, dogs used by native peoples for protection and food were of a breed found only in South America, but not in Asia.
There were, however, some clear examples of Asian influence. Islanders farmed chickens and pigs, which at the time were not known in South America but farmed extensively in Asia. Likewise, many Polynesians favored a form of outrigger canoe that was commonly used in Asia, but unknown in America.
Heyerdahl’s research had uncovered some interesting exceptions to these examples of Asian influence. The Maori tribes of New Zealand appeared to have cut themselves off from outside influences some time in their distant past until the time of European contact. At that time, they knew the sweet potato and the dog breeds of South America, but were ignorant of the chicken, the pig, and the outrigger canoe found on many other Polynesian islands. Presumably, these Asian influences were introduced after the Maori became isolated, but were adopted only by Polynesians on other islands. When viewed in this way, the Maori can be seen as representative of an original Polynesian culture before a later Micronesian or Indonesian influence.
The more Heyerdahl delved into the Polynesian problem, the more complex the issues became. The evidence pointed to a scenario of at least two migrations, the first coming from South America and the second originating in Asia. But a key question remained unanswered: If modern-day Polynesians originated in Asia, but could not travel directly west to east, how did they end up in the South Pacific?
THE NORTHWEST CONNECTION
It was while studying the Bella Coola Indians of British Columbia that Heyerdahl believed he discovered his northwest connection, and it gave him a new solution to the Polynesian problem. Heyerdahl believed that the ancestors of modern Polynesians first traveled to the Northwest Coast region of North America from Asia before they returned to the sea and sailed southwest across the Pacific.
A close study of the Pacific Ocean supports this theory. Even today, the fastest route by sail from Asia to the islands of Polynesia follows the Japan Current and prevailing winds northeast towards North America, then heads south and west towards Polynesia. On a flat map, this may look like an indirect route, but when traveling the curved surface of the globe, it is actually only marginally longer. This fact can be easily tested with a simple globe and a piece of string.
Heyerdahl also cited a variety of physical and cultural similarities that pointed to a connection between Northwest Native American populations and Polynesians.
“All the early explorers pointed out the similarities between the people of New Zealand and the people of British Columbia,” said Heyerdahl. “The physical types. The similarity in the canoes. The similarity for the Maori (statues) and the Northwest totem poles.
Captains Cook, Vancouver, and Jacobsen all noted similarities between Northwest Coast and New Zealand tribes in their logs. Cultural and physical similarities also convinced these explorers of an American origin of these South Pacific people. The tools, clothing, canoe styles, and homes of Polynesia were more like American natives than tribes from Southeast Asia.
Polynesians also physically differ considerably from Malaysians and Indonesians. In body type, skin pigmentation, and average height, pure Polynesians are nearly indistinguishable from Northwest Coast tribes. Twentieth century blood tests would later confirm that Polynesians are more directly related to Northwest Coast tribes than their neighbors to the west.
The construction of the large sea-going canoe highlights the kinds of similarities found between the Northwest Coast tribes and the Maori of New Zealand. Some of these canoes were very large, up to 70 feet long, 6 ½ feet wide, and 4 ½ feet deep, accommodating up to 100 people. Both groups added elevated bow and stern pieces to their canoes, and both carved and painted elaborate figureheads. Both groups also practiced the custom of lashing two canoes together for extended voyages. Neither had developed a fixed mast, yet both groups hoisted a kind of mat to catch accompanying wind. These canoes differ significantly from other Polynesian canoes, particularly in the absence of the Asian-influenced advance of a stabilizing outrigger.
It was the similarities between Maori tribes and the native peoples of the Northwest Coast that convinced Heyerdahl of an American route to Polynesia. This connection was explained in his 1978 book, Early Man and the Ocean:
“The often highly specialized Maori traits have found direct counterparts on the continental American islands beyond Hawaii,” said Heyerdahl. “The Hawaiians themselves are recorded to have built their big canoes from pine that had drifted to their islands from this Northwest American coast.”
Heyerdahl theorized that pre-Columbian travelers from Southeast Asia first migrated to what is now the Northwest Coast region of North America. Some settled there, while others sailed further south. Eventually, some made the trek back across the Pacific and into Polynesia, fully populating the islands well before their ‘discovery’ by Europeans.
Archeological evidence suggests that the descendants of these Asian migrants found the islands of Polynesia already inhabited by an earlier group who had journeyed west from the Peruvian coast. Polynesian legends claim these original islanders were absorbed into their populations.
KON-TIKI AND OTHER ADVENTURES
It was only after World War II that Heyerdahl had the opportunity to try to prove his theory. In truth, the Kon-Tiki Expedition was simply an attempt to prove that a simple raft built with Stone Age technology could survive the voyage from South America to Polynesia. It did not even try to consider the larger question of an Asian source for later Polynesians, or a route that may have taken such migrants from Asia to Northwest Coast, and on to Polynesia. The Kon-Tiki Expedition was a simple exercise in following the water.
On April 27, 1947, Heyerdahl and five other Scandinavian crewmen left the Peruvian port of Callao on a balsa wood raft named the Kon-Tiki. Few observers, including many experienced sailors, believed the crew would survive the journey, noting that the porous balsa wood would likely become waterlogged long before they could reach Polynesia.
The Kon-Tiki itself was unlike any other vessel on the seas at the time. The construction was surprisingly simple -- no nails or metal of any kind were used. Nine large balsa logs were lashed together with hemp rope to construct the raft base. The crew covered this approximately thirty foot square base with a woven bamboo deck and a small open cabin made from bamboo. Forward of the cabin they raised a double, A-frame mast that supported a simple square sail. Between the great logs that made up the raft, five centerboards were wedged to prevent it from drifting off course.
The Kon-Tiki was a faithful replica of ancient balsa rafts that were used by the Incas in Peru and Ecuador. At the time of European discovery, it was thought that these rafts could only be used close to land. Heyerdahl and his crew were trying to prove otherwise.
When the raft was ready, the Kon-Tiki was stocked with canned food and water for the trip. Among the more modern precautions were a rubber dingy and a short-wave radio for communicating with the outside world. The crew also brought a still camera and film, and a simple hand-held film camera.
The critics were proven wrong. The small raft performed admirably, bobbing on and over the great Pacific swells like a cork. Even in foul weather, waves breaking on deck would wash neatly between the logs. Riding the current and prevailing winds, Heyerdahl and his crew made slow but steady progress westward. The Kon-Tiki left Peru on April 27, 1947. It arrived at Raroia, 4300 nautical miles away, on August 7. The craft averaged 42.5 miles a day, sailed for 101 days, and deposited its crew safely -- if rather roughly -- in Polynesia.
The Kon-Tiki adventure was made into a best-selling book and later became an Academy Award-winning documentary. Thor Heyerdahl gained worldwide fame, as well as nearly universal scientific ridicule, for his theories of ancient sea travel. He continued, however, to stretch the boundaries that modern man had placed on his ancient ancestors.
After the Kon-Tiki Expedition, Heyerdahl launched other high-profile adventures to prove the seaworthiness of ancient craft. The Ra and Ra II Expeditions proved that ancient reed boats from Egypt could have survived a trans-Atlantic voyage. While his ideas were ridiculed for most of his career by the scientific mainstream, Heyerdahl’s theories are today being re-evaluated by a new generation of scientists, many who consider him ahead of his time.
Heyerdahl continued to ask these unpopular questions throughout his career, and was rewarded with a lifetime of adventures. He sailed the Pacific on Kon-Tiki. He sailed the Atlantic on Ra and Ra II. He led archeological expeditions to the Galapagos Islands and Easter Island. His most recent adventure brought him to the Canary Islands, where he was busy excavating the Pyramids of Guimar when he fell ill. Thor Heyerdahl died in his home in Italy on April 18, 2002 at the age of 87.
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© David Gallagher 2005.
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