A CENTURY OF MOUNTAINEERING MYSTERY

Sagarmatha, Qomolangma, Zhumulangma, Everest: it has several names, but the mountain is only one (Fig. 1). Known at the time to Westerners first as peak b and later as peak XV, after several years of measurements and calculations, in 1856 the mountain was confirmed to be the tallest one in the world with 8,840 meters (only 8 meters below the current official value). Since then, Mount Everest has captured the imagination of people, and powerfully drawn them to reach its summit. This attraction became even more tantalizing about a century ago when the first expeditions to the mountain started to be carried out.

The first one of them was the British expedition of the year 1921 whose goal was not that of climbing Everest but to perform a complete reconnaissance of the mountain from different sides in order to find a possible route to the top. A prominent member of that expedition was a British teacher from Cambridge named George Leigh Mallory. At the time, Nepal was closed to Western foreigners, particularly from Britain, so the exploration of the area surrounding the mountain was only possible from the north, from Tibet. Eventually, a possible approach was found through the Rongbuk glacier, and then a way to the summit via the North Col and the Northeast ridge of Everest (Fig. 1). Everything was thus set for the first expedition to attempt climbing the highest peak in the world the year after.

The 1922 expedition had the main goal of attaining the summit of Everest. Of course, George Mallory was one of the climbers considered for that feat. Nevertheless, the mountain did not allow any mortal to venture higher than 8,326 meters and claimed the lives of seven porters in a group-induced avalanche, the first reported climbing deaths on Everest. Despite the use of bottled oxygen and the achieved world altitude record at the time, the expedition returned home defeated. Another expedition needed then to be organized. Everest was there, and its summit had to be reached.

The year came, 1924. Another British expedition -the third one- would try to summit Mount Everest (Fig. 2). This would be the last opportunity for Mallory to stand atop the giant, and he would do his best to achieve such dream, even to the point of considering offering his own life in return. A new climber joined the team, Andrew “Sandy” Irvine, a young athletic Oxford student, skillful in matters that were considered very valuable: the design and operation of a state-of-the-art (at the epoch) oxygen set. This technology was seen as crucial to reach the top of the world. The first two attempts to the summit were unsuccessful. During the second one, Edward Norton sets a new altitude record by climbing up to 8,570 meters without supplemental oxygen, but turns back down, less than 300 meters from the top, because of increasing terrain difficulty, time constraints, and tiredness. Back at one of the lower camps, Norton discusses with Mallory about his climb, the route that he took, and the use of oxygen. The last and third summit attempt would be Mallory’s, and he took Andrew Irvine as climbing companion because of his strength and experience with the oxygen sets, despite him not being an actual climber.

Figure 2: The 1924 Everest Expedition team (not including the photographer, John Noel). Back row (left to right): Andrew "Sandy" Irvine, George Mallory, Edward Norton, Noel Odell, and John MacDonald. Front row (left to right): Edward Shebbeare, Geoffrey Bruce, Howard Somervell, and Bentley Bruce. Credit: John Noel.

Figure 3: This is the last photograph taken of Mallory and Irvine on June 6th, 1924, as they were departing the North Col for their summit attempt two days later. Credit: Noel Odell.

The duo and eight porters left Camp IV on the North Col for Camp V in the morning of June 6th, 1924 (Fig. 3). And their summit attempt took place on June 8th from Camp VI at 8,170 meters (Fig. 4). One of the support climbers, Noel Odell, a geologist by training, had a last vision of the pair around 12:50 PM going up the mountain near the base of the final pyramid of Everest (Fig. 4). As the clouds returned, that vision disappeared and Mallory and Irvine were never seen again alive. Thus the expedition concluded with a tragic loss, and once again, Everest’s summit resisted to be claimed by humans. However, the story does not end here. In fact, the disappearance of both English climbers gave rise to one of the greatest mysteries in mountaineering history: did humans set foot upon Mount Everest’s summit 29 years before the officially acknowledged first successful ascent by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953? Near a century after that fateful 1924 summit attempt, this question remains unanswered.

Perhaps we will never know exactly what happened on that day of June 8th, 1924. However, we can certainly try to make an educated guess based on the available evidence. Yes, there is information that can be used to that effect, although it is subjected to interpretation. Nevertheless, one can always try to be as objetive as possible. The starting point would be the eyewitness account of Noel Odell who was the last person to see Mallory and Irvine climbing Everest, or so it seems, from an altitude of about 8,000 meters. Odell’s observation was made public on the Alpine Journal (No. 229), and on page 7 of the Aberdeen Press and Journal edition of Saturday, July 5th, 1924, i.e. shortly after the expedition. There, Odell says:

Figure 4: Possible ascent routes that Mallory and Irvine may have taken from Camp VI on their summit attempt. The green line shows the most likely (approximate) route followed by the climbers according to some authors, and based on Mallory's knowledge and comments prior to the summit attempt itself. The yellow line indicates the route that is traditionally considered as the one climed by Mallory and Irvine via the Second Step on the Northeast ridge (which is where the modern route goes). The approximate locations of the 1924 Camp VI, and where a mitten, Irvine's ice axe, a 1924 oxygen bottle, and Mallory's body were found are also indicated. Main mountain features are labeled accordingly. Image credit: Vlado Cuchran, www.horami.sk via Pinterest.

“At 12.50, just after I had emerged in a state of jubilation at finding the first definite fossils on Everest, there was a sudden clearing of the atmosphere, and the entire summit ridge and final peak of Everest were unveiled. My eyes became fixed on one tiny black spot, silhouetted on a small snow crest beneath a rock step in the ridge, and the black spot moved. Another black spot became apparent, and moved up the snow to join the other on the crest. The first then approached the crest rock step, and shortly emerged at the top. The second did likewise. Then the whole fascinating vision vanished, enveloped in cloud once more. There was but one explanation. It was Mallory and his companion, moving, as I could see even at that great distance, with considerable alacrity, realizing doubtless that they had none too many hours of daylight to reach the summit from their present position and return to camp with the nightfall. The place on the ridge mentioned is a prominent rock step, at a very short distance from the base of the final pyramid, and it was remarkable that they were so late in reaching this place.”

The above statement is very relevant, particularly as it was produced when the memories of that expedition were still fresh in Odell’s mind. There is no reason to believe that Odell made all that up. The official expedition account published by Edward Norton several months later, in 1925, quoted a different statement by Odell, making that visual evidence to become uncertain. Overanalysis of what had happened, presumably prompted by questions from other people, together with the pass of time conspired to make Odell later to hesitate on what he had really seen from up above between camps V and VI on Everest. In Norton’s book, Odell speaks about the Second Step (Figs. 4 and 5) and even the First Step (Fig. 4), conceding that he saw only one of the two climbers above possibly the First Step but most likely the Second Step, the most difficult obstacle along the way (Fig. 5). And there it is where doubts started to be cast on what Odell actually saw and where Mallory and Irvine were last seen.

Figure 5: The Second Step on the Northeast ridge. This is the most difficult obstacle on the ridge on the way to the summit of Everest. Climbers have to go through a couple of near vertical sections, aided by fixed ropes and ladders. The upper section is about 6 meters in hight. None of those aids were available to Mallory and Irvine, and climbing it requires time and effort that are not consistent with Noel Odell's account. Credit: Grant ‘Axe’ Rawlinson.

Figure 6: The Third Step on the Northeast ridge, at a very short distance from the base of the final pyramid of Everest. This obstacle does not involve any climb, except for some rock scrambling. It is much easier than the Second Step, and may have been easily climbed by Mallory and Irvine as described by Noel Odell. Credit: Grant ‘Axe’ Rawlinson.

By today’s standards, the Second Step is very difficult to climb unaided (Fig. 5), although not impossible. It would have taken too much time for the climbers to achieve that, contrary to the first (still clear in his mind) statement by Odell. Something does not add up here. Considering that Mallory had previously discussed the ascent route with Norton (based on the latter’s climb a couple of days earlier), that he was very well aware of the technical difficulty of the Second Step and that his partner was not a real mountain climber, it is very reasonable to assume that Mallory and Irvine took a route nearly parallel to the Northeast ridge but below the Second Step, thus by-passing it, and then making their way up near the head of the Great Couloir until reaching the Third Step (Fig. 4), a much easier obstacle to overcome (Fig. 6). Odell’s original account is consistent with seeing Mallory and Irvine climbing the Third Step at 12:50 PM on June 8th, 1924: “The place on the ridge mentioned is a prominent rock step, at a very short distance from the base of the final pyramid”. The prominent rock step at a “very short” distance from the final pyramid must be the Third Step (Fig. 7), if anything. From there, they would have had enough time to make the summit by 4:00 PM, as concluded by Odell himself at the time, and also supported by Norton, unless some unexpected and major event occurred. We may never know for sure.

Figure 7: The Northeast ridge of Everest seen from a perspective that is approximately similar to the one that Odell may have had when last seeing Mallory and Irvine. Major mountain features are marked. Note that the actual summit of Everest is not seen as it is behind the massive rock formation of the final pyramid. In his first account, shortly after the June 8th, 1924, Odell stated: "The place on the ridge mentioned is a prominent rock step, at a very short distance from the base of the final pyramid". Image credit: Ralf Dujmovits.

Now let us move on the next set of evidence, that of objects found on the mountain that were used by the British climbers during their summit attempt in 1924. Here we have Andrew Irvine’s ice axe, and an oxygen cylinder. We will refer to other personal items later.

Irvine’s axe was the first one to be found, in 1933, at an elevation of 8,450 meters, about 20 meters below the Northeast ridge and about 230 meters before the First Step (Fig. 4), considering an upward progression from Camp VI (Fig. 4). What could have happened here is a matter of debate. Percy Wyn-Harris, who discovered and retrieved the axe, suggested that the tool marks the place of a fall. However, it seems that the way the axe was on the ground at the time of the discovery pointed to it being left there intentionally (not an accident). The topography of the place was that of an unlikely spot for a deadly fall. These observations were hard to reconcile with the obvious notion that no climber would simply abandon this fundamental tool, specially on Everest, as argued by Wyn-Harris. Something happened. Was the axe left there during the ascent, to be picked up on the way back, as it may have been considered unnecessary for the upper rocky terrain (explanation offered by Noel Odell)? Or was it left there by Irvine to secure Mallory with a rope, perhaps on the way back down at dark? Clearly, Irvine's ice axe needs of other clues to produce a more informative picture of what may have occurred.

And here there is another item: an oxygen cylinder, marked as "Bottle #9", was found in 1991 at about 8,480 meters of elevation, 20 meters higher and 60 meters closer to the first step than Irvine's axe position (Fig. 4). This is the highest elevation which a hard evidence of the passage of Mallory and Irvine on Everest has been found at to date. This cylinder has allowed some researchers, together with additional information that will be indicated below, to go deeper into the question of how much oxygen was used by Mallory and Irvine during their last climb, a decisive matter between reaching and not reaching the summit. It is very possible that the climbers carried 5 (2 Mallory and 3 Irvine) oxygen bottles in total, if not 6 (3 bottles each), during their summit bid. The cylinders could have well been used on a caching scheme, with a restricted oxygen usage below the First Step, to optimize weight, oxygen consumption, and assure the availability of that fundamental aid for a time period as long as possible during the descent from the top. A simple explanation presented in the literature, out of a few options, that works well is that Bottle #9 could have been left there when discarded on the descent, as maybe the last cylinder being consumed. There are uncertainties regarding the exact location at which this bottle was originally left on the mountain by Mallory and Irvin. However, regardless of that, Bottle #9 and the ancillary data that have been gathered (see below), seem to indicate that both climbers may have had enough supplemental oxygen for reaching Everest's summit. This would also be consistent with Odell's eyewitness account: "It was Mallory and his companion, moving, as I could see even at that great distance, with considerable alacrity".

Figure 8: George Leigh Mallory's body at its final resting place on Everest. The injuries to it are not severe enough as to suggests a single major fall from the Northeast ridge at the axe location. Its posture is consistent with an attempt of the climber to self arrest. The image shows Conrad Anker, the member of the 1999 Mallory and Irvine research expedition, who found Mallory's body. Note that part of the Northeast ridge is visible where the First Step and Final Pyramid are identifiable. Credit: Jake Norton/MountainWorld Photography.

Figure 9: A close up view of the upper torso of George Mallory as it was found on Everest. The rope around the body is clearly seen, and it may have been tied up to Irvine on the other end until it got broken. The clothes have been ripped up by action of the strong wind common at those heights on Everest. Overall, the body has been well preserved over the years. Credit: Dave Hahn/Getty.

And then a major piece of evidence was finally uncovered: the body of George Mallory himself! (Fig. 8). This was the result of the 1999 Mallory and Irvine Research Expedition, whose objective was to find the body of Andrew Irvine. In 1975, a Chinese climber named Wang Hong-bao came across an "old British dead" at about 8,100 meters. This sighting took place near Wang's camp, which provided a key reference starting point for the search of this body. As the area was roughly beneath the place where the ice axe had been found (Fig. 4), the expectation was that of finding the body of Irvine. Moreover, it may have also been expected that the less expert climber of the two had actually fallen to his death. That would provide a consistent picture with the idea of Irvine's axe higher up on the ridge signaling the site of an accident, likely on the way back late in the day. What a surprise then (in fact, it was!) to have found Mallory instead. His condition, exact location and posture, and the items found with and without him provided very valuable information that helped to get a little closer to solving the great mystery, and better understand the final moments of who is considered perhaps as the best climber of his time and his companion. Nevertheless, definite proof of both climbers, or at least one of them, reaching the summit of Everest in 1924 still remains elusive.

The place on the mountain where Mallory's body was found is not exactly on the fall line from the axe. Despite of having its right elbow dislocated or broken and its right leg fractured, the overall condition of the corpse was not consistent with a major fall from the axe location on the ridge (Figs. 8 and 9). If this had been the case, the wounds to Mallory's body would have been way more severe. Its posture indicates that Mallory tried to self arrest by using his hands and fingers (Figs. 8 and 9). Mallory was found with a rope around one of his shoulders and torso (Fig. 9) that produced a clear mark on the latter, indicative of a strong pull. This is consistent with the broken rope, likely being cut off by a protruding sharp edge of the terrain during the fall. It is natural to assume that at the other end of the rope was Andrew Irvine. It is possible that Mallory may have suffered more than one fall, the last one being the fatal one. A head injury is the most likely cause of death. This would be consistent with a displacement with respect to the direct fall line from the axe (Mallory could have walked a bit between the falls), and with the fact that the observed injuries were not as severe as those expected for a single major fall from the axe location (Fig. 4). Very sadly, Mallory was found only at about 300 meters away from the safety of camp VI (Fig. 4). In addition to the above, no trace of an oxygen set was found with Mallory, which indicates that this one should have been discarded as the oxygen cylinders were used up.

The extarnal examination of the body was followed by the recovery of the personal items that were with it. These turned out to be extraordinary evidence that allowed researchers to get a deeper insight into the last climb of Mallory and Irvine. Among the pieces recovered were Mallory's wristwatch, goggles, altimeter, pocketknife, personal letters, and ckecklists. Both wristwatch and altimeter were missing their hands and crystal covers. None of them would provide any objective indication of the time or elevation which they got broken at. However, the fact that the wristwatch was found carefully stowed in one of Mallory's pockets tells that the climber must have done so not in a rush and clearly aware, most probably during the way up. Moreover, the fact that the goggles were also found in a pocket indicates that Mallory was walking near dark when putting that artifact aside. This clearly suggests that at least Mallory, but most likely both climbers were alive near dusk. Considering that Norton suffered from snow blidness after his summit attempt because of not wearing his protective goggles, it would make no sense at all that Mallory had taken his off when in daylight. Finally, an annotated envelope with an itemized oxygen checklist indicated that at least 5 oxygen cylinders, and most likely 6, were used in the summit assault. The list recorded the amount of oxygen remaining in each cylinder. As only 5 were listed, a 6th cylinder may have been omitted as it was at full capacity. The last photograph ever taken of Mallory and Irvine alive when departing from the North Col (Fig. 3), clearly shows Irvine with 2 cylinders, and Mallory with at least one. The fact that 8 porters were used in the climb to camp VI, indicates that several more oxygen bottles were transported. Five or six oxygen cylinders would have given Mallory and Irvine the aid needed to perform their climb to the summit at a reasonable pace, and according to Mallory's plans.

Nevertheless, there are two items that were not found together with Mallory: a picture of his wife, Ruth, that he intended to leave on the summit, and a Vest Pocket Kodak camera that could contain pictures of the summit. His wife picture is virtually impossible to find, but the pocket camera may well be with Irvine, according to researchers. He could have been the designated photographer and taken all the pictures of the climb. Another possibility would be that Mallory lost his camera during his fall, but this makes its recovery much more difficult, and possibly impossible to find the camera in good conditions as to be able to process any film in it. Still, Irvine may have been carrying his own camera! Therefore, finding the body of Andrew Irvine has become now the most important piece of the puzzle to solve once and for all the greatest mystery in mountaineering history. For completeness, it should be metioned that a mitten, presumably belonging to one of the lost climbers, was found up on the Northeast ridge (Fig. 4). However, this object can easily been carried with the wind, so it is basically impossible to conclude anything significant from it.

Figure 10: Some of the items found with George Mallory's remains: goggles, altimer, and pocketknife. Credit: Jim Fagiolo/Mallory and Irvine Research Expedition.

Figure 11: A portable Vest Pocket Kodak camera, like the one that Mallory was carrying (lent by Somervell), and possibly Irvine as well. This artifact may hold the key to solving the greatest mystery in mountaineering history. Credit: Tony Kemplen.

Considering all the information available, the in-depth research by competent authors and their personal conclusions, one could indeed agree on a sensible picture of what may have happened to Mallory and Irvine based on those investigations. Mallory and Irvine departed Camp VI to the summit of Everest following a route that went up to the First Step, and then continued on trying to at least maintain a constant elevation, thus bypassing the Second Step underneath it (Fig. 4). Climbers carried enough oxygen that was cached along the way to optimize weight and guarantee its availability all the way to the summit and some part of the way down, at least. When reaching the Great Couloir, near the point at which Norton had turned around days before, Mallory and Irvine made their way up until reaching the Third Step, and from there continued on to reaching the summit by 4:00 - 5:00 PM. Likely still on oxygen, both climbers undid the ascending path until reaching perhaps the First Step after sunset. In darkness, out of exhaution, one of the climbers slipped dragging the companion along as they were both roped up together. Once the rope got cut off, both men got separated. Mallory ended up where he was found in 1999, and Irvine may have survived the fall. Not fatally injured, Irvine may have tried to search for his partner, but because of being at dark, at a very low temperature, and completely exhausted he may have finally given up, falling asleep to his death. Based not on the very first account by Odell but on his subsequent statements, several authors have made the hyphotesis that the British climbers went on the ridge climbing both the First and Second step. However, Mallory was well aware of the difficult climb of those obstacles and knew the route taken by Norton. It made more sense to try to reach the final pyramid from the head of the Great Couloir (Fig. 4), avoiding the Second Step. Climbing the Second Step, may have been possible for Mallory with the help of Irvine. However, Irvine may have not been able to climb it, and preferred to wait for Mallory there or at a lower elevation, perhaps near the First Step. This would not be consistent with Odell's very first statement. Mallory would have summited Everest and descended alone into the Great Couloir, trying to follow Norton's route. At dark, with no more oxygen available, he would have fell from much lower than the Northeast ridge to his final resting place, while Irvine, waiting for him higher up on the mountain, could have died from exposure. This, however, sounds unlikely as Irvine past certain hour would have returned to Camp VI, and Mallory was most probably roped up to someone. Another possibility would have been that both climbers turned back after realizing that climbing the Second Step was impossible, and then both had an accident, but it would have happened in plain daylight, possibly on oxygen, which is hard to believe.

It seems then that the only chance at solving the whole puzzle rest in the possibility of finding Irvine's body, still out there on Everest. He may have a camera with summit photographs in it, which would be the definite proof, if it is still possible to develop them. Perhaps, equally interesting, it is the possibility of finding rock samples from the summit in his pockets, something that, apparently and oddly enough, was not a concern when searching the body of Mallory. Other expeditions have tried to find Irvine, unsuccessfully. Researchers have used current technology to pinpoint with high accuracy his possible location on the mountain. However, Everest has been very reluctant at giving up what it is perhaps its greatest secret. In 2019, another expedition set off to search for Irvine, but it came back home with not positive result. Nearing the 100th anniversary of the birth of this mystery, we may see an increasing interest in trying to find Andrew Irvine's remains and hopefuly a definite answer to the great question. Nevertheless, and as always, Everest will decide.

References:

"Death came suddenly in the blink of an eye - Mallory and Irvine's Last Climb" by Pete Poston (April 2013)
"Odell's view of Mallory & Irvine at 12:50" by Michael Tracy, from YouTube (August 2017)
"Mallory's Route to the Summit" by Michael Tracy, from Mallory & Irvine (April 2017)
"Oxygen Bottle #9" by Michael Tracy, from Mallory & Irvine (April 2017)
"What climbing Everest taught me about George Mallory’s final hours" by Mark Horrell (September 2012)
"What happened to Mallory & Irvine? A Synopsis" by Jochen Hemmleb (2007)
Andrew Irvine, from Wikipedia, and references therein
"Mount Everest - Archaeology in the Death Zone" by Lars Pilø (Editor), Secrets of the Ice (April 2017)
"Ghosts of Everest" by Eric Simonson, Jochen Hemmleb, and Larry Johnson, Outside Magazine (October 1999)

— August 2020.

The following is a collection of selected information on Mallory and Irvine:

Wiki: G. Mallory, A. Irvine, Exps. of 1921, 1922,        and 1924 Pete Poston's page on the mystery of Mallory & Irvine Machael Tracy's page on Mallory & Irvine Mark Horrel's article on Mallory & Irvine Archaeology in the Death Zone Gareth Thomas rethinking Mallory and Irvine The Story of Mallory and Irvine: Parts 1, 2, and 3	NOVA: Lost on Everest Mallory & Irvine Research Expedition 1999 Jochen Hemmleb's Mallory & Irvine Research What Happened to Mallory and Irvine? A Synopsis Ghosts of Everest EverestNews.com's theory of Mallory & Irvine Comments on the 'real Second Step' route: Parts 1, and 2