Tolstoy in Tibet

Below is a photo from the 1942 – 1943 Tolstoy Expedition to Tibet, a secret American mission to find a supply route between India and China. The expedition found the a route but political problems between the Tibetans and the Chinese prevented its use. Had the mission been successful the Americans and British could of supported their ally, China, in the fight against the Japanese with weapons and equipment.

Though the mission failed, the expedition took a series of photographs. They are remarkable because they capture Tibet and its people only eight years before the Chinese invasion and occupation. Few if any photographs were taken between the expedition and the early 1980s when China relaxed its iron fist slightly and allowed a handful of Western tourists into the area.

It is unclear what sources of information Herge had on Tibet when writing Tintin in Tibet. It has always been a remote and isolated country where few Westerners have travelled but Herge must of had good photographic sources for his drawing. Did he see photos from the Tolstoy Expedition? Probably not but these photographs are the last permanent record of country and way of life that no long exist.

Source: Travelin Tibet – Note the text accompanying the photos is unconnected to the Tolstoy Expedition.