Norwegian Explorer Thor Heyerdahl was laid to rest in honor with a state funeral at the Oslo Cathedral following his death in 2002 at the age of 87, however his remains were kept in an urn in his last residence in Italy.
Now, more than 110 years following his birth in the coastal town of Larvik, his remains have arrived.
Widely considered one of the country’s most famous Norwegians, Heyerdahl is best known for hit 1947 Kon-Tiki expedition, when he and his crew sailed 8,000 kilometers over the Pacific Ocean on a raft that they had built, and would do the same in his Ra expeditions on a papyrus raft in an effort to prove his theories that ancient civilizations could have been formed after such journeys.
Heyerdahl pointed to pyramids and art similar to that of Egyptians should up thousands of miles away in Mexico to support his, albeit controversial, theories.
Heyerdahl eventually settled on an estate in the Italian town of Colla Micheri, where he died over 20 years ago. His life had become the subject of major film projects and even though his funeral was held in Oslo and attended by Norwegian dignataries and members of the royal family, his urn was transported back for burial in the country of Italy.
His son, Thor Jr., who still lives in Norway, eventually agreed with enthusiasts who proposed bringing his remains back to his birthplace.
“Heyerdahl had an exciting life, with many different projects,” Øyvind Riise Jenssen, former mayor of Larvik, said to NRK. “Many people will visit his grave, and that firms his position as a Larvik boy,” Jenssen said. “It means a lot for us that he’s come home.”
