Between
1921 and 1938 the Mount Everest Committee (MEC) organized the first
seven Mount Everest Expeditions, all of which attempted to climb the
north side of Everest, which lies in Tibet. His Holiness the 13th Dalai
Lama gave special permission to the MEC to allow access to climbers and
surveyors so that Everest and the surrounding region could be mapped and
climbed. These early expeditions traveled through Sikkim and marched
along the Tibetan plateau, from the Rongbuk Glacier, they followed the
East Rongbuk Glacier and attempted to ascend Everest from the North Col.
Famously, in 1924 Mallory and Irvine disappeared into the mists of
Everest. To this day it is not known whether they ever reached the
summit. During the 1930s further attempts were made on the mountain, but
due to bad weather, the summit remained elusive.
Mount Everest
Photo: A.F.R. Wollaston, 1921
Chomolhari (Mountain of the Goddess) at
23,997 feet (7314m) rises above the plateau on the Tibet-Bhutan border.
This mountain is sacred to Tibetan Buddhists. Every year pilgrims
assemble in the town of Phari Dzong, and walk in procession to the
mountain.
Photo: A.F.R. Wollaston, 1921
The recruitment of fit and reliable porters
was essential for the success of any Mount Everest Expedition. Here, a
would-be porter presents himself for selection to members of the 1936
team, which required approximately 60 porters.
Photo: Hugh Ruttledge, 1936
Above: Major Wheeler’s
Photographic Survey Party: using photo-topographical surveying
instruments, Wheeler with his two assistants methodically photographed
and mapped the Everest region.
Photo: A.F.R. Wollaston, 1921
Right: On the 1921 Expedition only Major Morshead
spoke a little Tibetan, so it was vital to have interpreters who could
help expedition members negotiate with and understand the Tibetan
people. Gyalzen Kazi (left) from Gangtok in Sikkim and Chheten Wangdi (right), a Tibetan who had fought with the Indian army in Egypt, were employed for this role.
Photo: A.F.R. Wollaston, 1921
The ant-like figures of the expedition
members give perspective to the sheer scale of the task at hand –
climbing the North Col- as a team head for Camp IV at the top of the
1000 feet (305 m) climb.
Photo: Bentley Beetham, 1924
A column of over 30 porters carries supplies
up the slope leading to the North Col. It was on this slope –
dangerously laden with new snow – that seven porters died in an
avalanche in 1924.
Photo: Frank Smythe, 1936
George Mallory and Edward Norton approach their high point, setting a new world altitude record of 26,985 feet (8225 m) on the North Face of Everest in 1922.
Photo: T.H. Somervell, 1922
Above: A line of Sherpa porters takes a
well-deserved rest in the snow and ice after carrying heavy packs up to
the North Col of Mount Everest.
Photo: Captain J.B. Noel, 1922
Left: Porters loaded with supplies make their way up the left trough above Camp II. Mount Everest rises above them.
Photo: Frank Smythe, 1933
A team sets off up the North Ridge from the
North Col in 1938. This was the seventh expedition to attempt the
mountain, but it too was defeated, this time by persistent bad weather,
which dumped huge quantities of snow on the mountain.
Photo: Unknown, 1938
Left: Mallory, Norton, and Somervell
had to rescue several porters who had been unwillingly abandoned on the
slopes of the North Col. Namgya shows his severely frostbitten fingers.
Photo: Bentley Beetham, 1924
Above: The “Tigers” of 1938. Tilman
comments “It is of course a matter for wonder, no less than
thankfulness, how much these men will do and how far they will go with
one imagines few of the incentives which act as a spur to us."
Photo: Unknown, 1938
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Above, left: A porter fords a river carrying
both his friend and his dog! The route to Everest took the 1920s and 30s
expeditions over many rivers and streams. Great ingenuity was used to
avoid getting wet.
Photo: Frank Smythe, 1933
Above, right: Yaks fording the Yaru river near Mende.
Photo: Frank Smythe, 1933
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