546 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1961 



Captain Cook in 1769, with the exception of the sweet potato, were all 

 Malaysian and therefore presumably introduced from the west. 

 Among such plants may be mentioned the taro {Colocasia esculenta 

 (L.) Schott) as well as the related Alocasia macrorrhiza (L.) Schott 

 and some other aroids, three species of yam {Dioscorea), some ba- 

 nanas (species of Musa), and the breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis 

 (Parkins.) Fosb.). Accordingly it is not surprising that two well- 

 known specialists on the flora of Polynesia, Merrill and St. John, were 

 outspoken opponents of Heyerdahl's theory. 



Similarly in ethnological circles the Kon-Tiki theory has been criti- 

 cized and censured. I may briefly mention here the critical review 

 by de Josselin de Jong (1953), professor of ethnology at the Uni- 

 versity of Leiden, the Netherlands. De Josselin de Jong wisely did 

 not comment too strongly on Heyerdahl's etlmobotanical ideas, but 

 he definitely rejected the manner in which Heyerdahl in his botanical 

 chapter adduced arguments in support of his theory. 



I also wish to mention here a critical review by the Viennese ethnolo- 

 gist Heine-Geldern (1952), who similarly concluded that Heyerdalil 

 failed to prove the American origin of the Polynesians. He pointed 

 out, however, that we must not lose sight of Heyerdahl's real contri- 

 bution, because he proved that a voyage — for instance a voyage home- 

 ward of Polynesians who had managed to reach the South American 

 coast — might be possible even if their food supply had become ex- 

 hausted. Heine-Geldern amply reviewed Heyerdahl's botanical 

 chapter. Of the mentioned species of plants, he discussed the coconut, 

 rejecting an American origin for this plant; he stated that as early 

 as a century before our era, coconuts were grown in India. The sweet 

 potato, in his opinion, was brought to Polynesia from America by 

 Polynesians. Finally he gives a detailed review of the cotton problem. 

 He is firmly convinced that American cotton has been introduced 

 into Polynesia, basing this conclusion upon the chromosome pattern 

 of the American species. As to why this introduction was made, 

 Heine-Geldern cites Miss Teuira Heniy ("Ancient Taliiti," Bishop 

 Mus. Press) , who stated that in Tahiti cotton was formerly cultivated 

 and was used to embalm the dead. By this expression we may pre- 

 sumably understand that the body was filled with raw cotton. A 

 somewhat similar custom occurred in Peru, but the practice may have 

 been imported from Peru by Polynesians and not necessarily carried 

 to Polynesia by Americans. Heine-Geldem's hypothesis is that the 

 originally imported species of cotton became extinct, and afterward 

 another species was brought into Polynesia which did become a sub- 

 spontaneous weed, whereas the practice of "embalming" died out. 

 However, every trace of proof is lacking. Heyerdahl (1951-1952), 

 countering Heine-Geldern's critical review, stated that it referred 



