The Throne of the Gods

An international expedition led by Dr. G. O. Dyhrenfurth, a distinguished Swiss scientist, meets in Venice to plan an attempt to climb the highest mountain ever reached by man, the Jongsong, in the wild mountainous region of the Himalayas known as "The Throne of the World." The group leaves on a steamer. Mrs. Hettie Dyhrenfurth, the doctor's wife who is to handle secretarial work and supervise the "culinary department," is said to be the first woman to climb a giant Tibetan mountain. At Port Said, Egypt, the group visits the Sphinx. The steamer passes through the Suez Canal and stops at Aden, on the Arabian Sea, then lands at Bombay, India, where a bazaar is in progress. The Taj Mahal is shown. The group next travels to Delhi in order to get the consent for the expedition from the Viceroy, and then to Benares. Some members of the expedition enter India through Calcutta. The group boards a train to Darjeeling, near the Tibetan border, which is at an altitude of 10,000 feet. The lamas play instruments to welcome the explorers, and priests present members of the expedition with kerchiefs for protection. Tea is served to the group, and the devil dance of warrior monks is exhibited. Because exploration of the mountains is viewed as sacrilegious, the group finds it difficult to hire native aides. An old man tells his son Darseena about the demons that lurk in the mountains, but the boy joins up as a porter. In Tibet, a base camp is set up at Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim, and Dr. Dyhrenfurth gives a talk to the porters, who erect prayer flags of Pamionschi and pray. The first night of the climb, part of the group, wearing grease on their faces to protect themselves from the sun's radiation, reaches a glacier lake at 19,000 feet. A second camp is set up at 20,000 feet. During a cyclone, an avalanche occurs, and four men are endangered. When the snow is cleared, Darseena is carried out. The porters object to efforts to try to resuscitate him, which they consider wrong, and the boy is buried. Their pass blocked, the group, now very determined to get to the top, go around the mountain to find another pass and come to an area where the countries of Sikkim, Nepal and Tibet meet. Dr. Dyhrenfurth and his wife go in advance of the group, and she falls into a crevice while roped to her husband. He signals an "S.O.S.," and other climbers drop a noose to Mrs. Dyhrenfurth, who has broken her wrist and is hanging precariously from the rope attached to her husband. She is pulled to safety. She now remains at the base of Jongsong. Because the season will change in a few days, the expedition splits into two groups to give the younger men a better chance to reach the peak. Incidentally, the group has lost all interest in eating meat at the high altitudes, preferring chocolate and jam to produce body heat. Two of the younger climbers, Erwin Schneider and Hermann Hoerlin, soon are several hours in advance, and accompanied by cameraman Ulrich Wieland, they reach the peak and shake hands. Others soon arrive. With one steep slope to go, Dr. Dyhrenfurth's heart bothers him, so he inhales some oxygen. Revived, the forty-four-year-old doctor finally reaches the top, and flags representing the home countries of the expedition members are flown.