Thor Heyerdahl

Thor Heyerdahl (1914–2002) was a Norwegian explorer, ethnologist, and author renowned for his 1947 Kon-Tiki expedition, where he crossed 8,000 km of the Pacific Ocean on a balsawood raft to demonstrate possible ancient transoceanic contacts from South America to Polynesia.[1][2][3] He later led reed boat expeditions Ra, Ra II, and Tigris to support his theories on ancient cultural diffusion, though many were rejected by the scientific community.[1][2] Heyerdahl also conducted archaeological work, including the first excavations on the Galapagos Islands in 1952 and on Easter Island in 1955.[4][5]