Let's have a show of hands: who knows where the Gobi Desert is? Don't know about you, but my hand didn't go up! I didn't have a clue before reading Explorations in the Gobi Desert, Roy Chapman Andrews, National Geographic Magazine, June 1933. The Gobi Desert is in the heart of Mongolia, a land-locked country bordering Russia on the north, and China on the east, west, and south.
Dr. Andrews, a geologist, reports that although the Russians had previously explored Mongolia for geologic history, "the country had not been studied by the exact methods of modern science." One reason for this lack of studying the country was its distant location, its size, and its primitive conditions. "Distances are tremendous and transportation slow. Mongolia is, roughly, 2,000 miles from east to west and 1,200 miles from north to south. In all this vast area, there is not a single mile of railroad. Transport is by camels, ponies, and oxcarts," (p. 653). In addition, climate temperatures may reach from 40 to 50 degrees below zero in the winter
It was decided that travel would be best accomplished in automobiles, which could travel perhaps 100 miles per day, to compare with 10 miles per day on camels. However, caravans of camels would carry the equipment. We can't forget: the camels even had to carry tanks of gasoline; there were NO service stations in the desert!
Bandits were an ever-present danger: "They swarm like devouring locusts, even up to the walls of cities. Usually they are soldier-deserters from unpaid or defeated armies. . . At the time of our fourth expedition, in 1928, bandits occupied this entire region. There were about 10,000 of them, and every camel, cart, or car. . . was certain to be robbed before it had gone 50 miles," (p. 655).
Here's a surprise from the author: "I had one advantage, for the chief bandit proved to be an old friend," Even so, the bandit demanded an exhorbitant $100 fee for each car. Dr. Andrews hinted at men with rifles and a machine gun. "We didn't have a machine gun, but the word went out, and we were not attacked that year," (p. 656).
The author and his team made a very important discovery. "Before the first season in Mongolia was ended, it was evident that we had discovered one of the richest and most important fossil fields in all the world. The dinosaur eggs alone made it famous. . . The discovery was important because no one knew that dinosaurs laid eggs," (p. 663).
They were asked how they knew the eggs were dinosaur eggs. ". . . two of the eggs contain parts of the embryo skeletons of unhatched baby dinosaurs!" (p. 664). Mr. Andrews wondered why dinosaur eggs held such fascination for the layman. "I supposed it is because of their great age. Ninety-five million years is the estimated age of the strata in which the eggs were embedded," (p. 664).
The troupe found evidence of an ancient culture, thousands of implements. Mr. Andrews estimated that there were many millions of inhabitants of Mongolia 20,000 years ago, compared to the less than one million in the 1930s. "Where did they come from and where did they go? Doubtless they were driven out by increasing aridity," (p. 668).
The first photograph in the eight-page colored section shows a lama (Buddhist monk) with a giant prayer wheel. "The zealot believes that every time the wheel is turned a prayer automatically goes up to Buddha in his behalf," (photo caption, p. 669). The native Mongol tribes wore quite colorful clothing with very elaborate jewel-studded headdresses. The familiar "felt-covered yurt, a portable dwelling adaptable to the Mongols' needs, since it can be easily taken down, transported, and erected again," (photo caption, p. 673) was evident.
The geologists of the expedition, "have read a fascinating story of earth history in the rocks of the Central Asian plateau. They have learned that this is the oldest continually dry land known to science." That part of the world was never covered with glacial ice as had America and Europe, thus preserving the human and animals remains. Continuing, "strangely enough, deserts often have more animal and bird life than do heavy forests. . . That is true of the Gobi," (p. 676).
In the next blog entry, I'll continue with more on the bird life of the Gobi desert in the 1930s.
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