Remains of British Mountaineer Missing During First Everest Ascent Attempt 100 Years Ago Found

Remains of One Foot of Irvine Missing Since 1924 Found
Discovery of Camera May Reveal Whether Summit Was Reached
Current First Everest Ascent Record Is 1953

The remains of a British mountaineer who went missing while attempting the first ascent of the world's highest peak, Mount Everest in the Himalayas (8,848m), 100 years ago have been discovered.

On the 12th (local time), AP and AFP news agencies reported that a National Geographic documentary team found what is believed to be one foot bone of Andrew Irvine (1902?1924), a famous British climber who went missing 100 years ago in 1924, on the Longbuk Glacier in the central part of Everest. The remains were found along with a sock and a climbing boot bearing Irvine's name, "A.C. Irvine."

The remains of one foot of British mountaineer Andrew Irvine (1902?1924), who went missing during the ascent of Mount Everest in the Himalayas, the world's highest peak 100 years ago, have been discovered.
[Photo by National Geographic, AP Yonhap News]

At the time of his disappearance, Irvine and his companion George Mallory (1886?1924) attempted the world's first ascent of Everest but were last seen near 8,600m, about 250m short of the summit, before vanishing. The first confirmed ascent of Everest was recorded in 1953 by British mountaineer Sir Edmund Hillary (1919?2008) and Nepalese Sherpa Tenzing Norgay (1914?1986). Whether Irvine and Mallory reached the summit 29 years before Sir Hillary remains one of the most debated topics in the global mountaineering community for decades.

Since Irvine had a camera during the climb, if he had reached the summit, there is a high possibility that photos taken there still exist. The recent discovery of part of his remains increases the chances of finding Irvine’s other remains and his camera. If Irvine’s camera is found, it could definitively resolve the long-standing debate about whether they reached the summit. AP described the camera as a "Holy Grail" for mountaineers, and AFP predicted that "if this camera is discovered, it could rewrite the history of mountaineering."

National Geographic Documentary Team That Found Irvine's Remains Jimmy Chin [Photo by National Geographic, AP Yonhap News]

Jimmy Chin, who led the National Geographic documentary team, said, "The search area for Irvine’s camera has definitely narrowed." Irvine’s descendants are scheduled to undergo DNA testing to confirm the identity of the remains. Mallory’s body, who went missing with Irvine, was found first in 1999, but no evidence was found at that time to prove whether they reached the summit. Mallory is also famous for his response to the question, "Why do you want to climb Everest?" with the answer, "Because it’s there."

Meanwhile, due to recent global warming causing ice to melt, remains of mountaineers who went missing decades ago are increasingly being discovered.

In July, the mummified body of an American mountaineer who went missing 22 years ago was found in the Andes Mountains of Peru. The remains were identified as William Stemple (aged 59 at the time of disappearance), who vanished in June 2002 after being caught in an avalanche while climbing Huascar?n, the highest snow-capped mountain in Peru. His clothes, climbing gear, and other belongings were well preserved, and his passport was found, confirming his identity.

Also, in July last year, climbers passing over the Theodul Glacier above Zermatt, Switzerland, discovered human remains. Genetic analysis revealed the remains belonged to a German climber (aged 38 at the time) who went missing 37 years ago in 1986. Despite extensive searches at the time, no trace of him was found. In the Alps, traces of accidents long buried under snow have been increasingly uncovered recently. In 2022, wreckage from a plane crash in 1968 was found on the Aletsch Glacier, and in 2014 and 2015, the bodies of British and Japanese climbers who went missing in the 1970s were discovered consecutively.