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Things Revealed
 Supplements
to the

Journal for the Study

of Judaism
Editor
John J. Collins
The Divinity School, Yale University

Associate Editor
Florentino García Martínez
Qumran Institute, University of Groningen

Advisory Board
j. duhaime ‒ a. hilhorst ‒ p.w. van der horst
a. klostergaard petersen ‒ m.a. knibb ‒ j.t.a.g.m. van ruiten
j. sievers ‒ g. stemberger ‒ e.j.c. tigchelaar ‒ j. tromp

VOLUME 89
Michael E. Stone
 Things Revealed
Studies in Early Jewish and Christian
Literature in Honor of Michael E. Stone

Edited by
Esther G. Chazon, David Satran and
Ruth A. Clements

AEGID
B
E
TA SU

..
P AA LL LL AA S

..
TU

.
S

BRILL
LEIDEN • BOSTON
2004
 This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in Publication data

Things revealed : studies in early Jewish and Christian literature in honor of

Michael E. Stone / edited by Esther G. Chazon, David Satran, and Ruth A.
Clements.
p. cm. — (Supplements to the Journal for the Study of Judaism ; v. 89)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 90-04-13885-4 (alk. paper)
1. Apocryphal books—Criticism, interpretation, etc. 2. Dead Sea scrolls.
3. Christian literature, Early—History and criticism. I. Stone, Michael E.,
1938– II. Chazon, Ester G. III. Satran, David. IV. Clements, Ruth. V. Series.

BS1700.T55 2004
229’.06—dc22
2004054468

ISSN 1384-2161
ISBN 90 04 13885 4

© Copyright 2004 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated,

stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior
written permission from the publisher.

Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Brill

provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance
Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910, Danvers, MA 01923, USA.
Fees are subject to change.

printed in the netherlands

 CONTENTS

Abbreviations .............................................................................. ix

Introduction ................................................................................ xv
Esther G. Chazon and David Satran
Michael E. Stone: An Appreciation ........................................ xxiii
Frank Moore Cross
Festschrift Presentation: Letter to Michael .............................. xxv
Harold W. Attridge

APOCRYPHA AND PSEUDEPIGRAPHA

The Third Sybil Revisited ........................................................ 3

John J. Collins
Jubilees 32 and the Bethel Cult Traditions in Second Temple
Literature ...................................................................................... 21
Esther Eshel
Reviving (and Refurbishing) the Lost Apocrypha of M. R.
James .......................................................................................... 37
Robert A. Kraft
Where is the Place of Eschatological Blessing? ...................... 53
George W. E. Nickelsburg
The Traditions About Abraham’s Early Life in the Book
of Judith (5:6–9) ........................................................................ 73
Adolfo Roitman
Scripture in the Astronomical Book of Enoch ........................ 89
James C. VanderKam
Wisdom, Instruction, and Social Location in Sirach and
1 Enoch ........................................................................................ 105
Benjamin G. Wright III
vi contents

Whither Elijah? The Ascension of Elijah in Biblical and

Extrabiblical Traditions .............................................................. 123
J. Edward Wright

DEAD SEA SCROLLS

Two Notes on Measuring Character and Sin at Qumran .... 141

Gary A. Anderson
Dibre Hame"orot and the Apocalypse of Weeks ........................ 149
Hanan Eshel
The Purity Laws of 4QD: Exegesis and Sectarianism .......... 155
Martha Himmelfarb
Historical Implications of the Early Second Century Dating
of the 4Q249–250 Cryptic A Corpus ...................................... 171
Stephen J. Pfann
The Special Character of the Texts Found in Qumran
Cave 11 ...................................................................................... 187
Emanuel Tov

PHILO OF ALEXANDRIA

A Neglected Text of Philo of Alexandria: First Translation

into a Modern Language .......................................................... 199
David T. Runia
Abraham and the Promise of Spirit: Points of Convergence
Between Philo and Paul ............................................................ 209
Sze-kar Wan

EARLY CHRISTIAN LITERATURE

Abraham’s Refutation of Astrology: An Excerpt from

Pseudo-Clement in the Chronicon of George the Monk .......... 227
William Adler
 contents vii

Mother Jerusalem, Mother Church: Desolation and

Restoration in Early Jewish and Christian Literature ............ 243
Theodore A. Bergren
A “Prayer Alleged to be Jewish” in the Apostolic Constitutions .... 261
Esther G. Chazon
Why not Naphtali? ...................................................................... 279
Vered Hillel
Twenty-Five Questions to Corner the Jews: A Byzantine
Anti-Jewish Document from the Seventh Century ................ 289
Pieter W. van der Horst
Sidelights on the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs from the
Greek Catena on Genesis .......................................................... 303
Marinus de Jonge
Galen, Papias and Others on Teaching and Being Taught .... 317
Jaap Mansfeld
Isaac of Antioch and the Literature of Adam and Eve ........ 331
Edward G. Mathews, Jr.
The Adam and Eve Traditions in The Journey of Zosimos ...... 345
Ronit Nikolsky
Deceiving the Deceiver: Variations on an Early Christian
Theme ........................................................................................ 357
David Satran

Bibliography of the Works of Michael E. Stone .................... 365

Index of Modern Authors ........................................................ 381

Index of Ancient Sources .......................................................... 386
 ABBREVIATIONS

AArmL Annual of Armenian Linguistics

AASOR Annual of the American Schools of Oriental Research
AB Anchor Bible
ABD Anchor Bible Dictionary. Ed. D. N. Freedman. 6 vols. New
York: Doubleday, 1992
ABR Australian Bible Review
ABRL Anchor Bible Reference Library
ACCS Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture
AGJU Arbeiten zur Geschichte des antiken Judentums und des
Urchristentums
ALGHJ Arbeiten zur Literatur und Geschichte des hellenistischen
Judentums
ANRW Aufstieg und Niedergang der römischen Welt: Geschichte und Kultur
Roms im Spiegel der neueren Forschung. Ed. H. Temporini and
W. Haase. Berlin: de Gruyter, 1972–
ANTZ Arbeiten zur neutestamentlichen Theologie und Zeitge-
schichte
APAT Die Apokryphen und Pseudepigraphen des Alten Testaments. Trans-
lated and edited by E. Kautzsch. 2 vols. Tübingen, 1900
ASOR American Schools of Oriental Research
ATD Das Alte Testament Deutsch
AThR Anglican Theological Review
BA Biblical Archaeologist
BAR Biblical Archaeology Review
BETL Bibliotheca ephemeridum theologicarum lovaniensium
BHM Bet-HaMidrash. Ed. A. Jellinek. 6 vols. 2d edition. Jerusalem:
Wahrman, 1967 (Hebrew)
BHT Beiträge zur historischen Theologie
BibOr Biblica et orientalia
BJRL Bulletin of the John Rylands University Library of Manchester
BJS Brown Judaic Studies
BNTC Black’s New Testament Commentaries
BSOAS Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies
BZAW Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft
x abbreviations

BZNW Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die neutestamentliche Wissen-

schaft
CBQ Catholic Biblical Quarterly
CBQMS Catholic Biblical Quarterly Monograph Series
CFHB Corpus fontium historiae byzantinae
CJ Classical Journal
ConBNT Coniectanea neotestamentica or Coniectanea biblica: New
Testament Series
CRINT Compendia rerum iudaicarum ad Novum Testamentum
CSCO Corpus scriptorum christianorum orientalium
CSHB Corpus scriptorum historiae byzantinae
CWS Classics of Western Spirituality
DJD Discoveries in the Judaean Desert
DJDJ Discoveries in the Judaean Desert of Jordan
DSD Dead Sea Discoveries
EPRO Etudes préliminaries aux religions orientales dans l’empire
romain
EvT Evangelische Theologie
FB Forschung zur Bibel
FC Fathers of the Church. Washington, D.C., 1947–
GCS Die griechische christliche Schriftsteller der ersten Jahr-
hunderte
GRBS Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies
HALOT Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament. Ed. L. Koehler,
W. Baumgartner, and J. J. Stamm. 5 vols. Leiden: Brill,
1994–2000
HAT Handbuch zum Alten Testament
HSM Harvard Semitic Monographs
HSS Harvard Semitic Studies
HTKNT Herder theologischer Kommentar zum Neuen Testament
HTR Harvard Theological Review
HTS Harvard Theological Studies
HUCA Hebrew Union College Annual
HUCM Hebrew Union College Monographs
ICC International Critical Commentary
IEJ Israel Exploration Journal
IOS Israel Oriental Society
JAAR Journal of the American Academy of Religion
JANES Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society of Columbia University
JAOS Journal of the American Oriental Society
JBL Journal of Biblical Literature
 abbreviations xi

JCS Journal of Cuneiform Studies

JJS Journal of Jewish Studies
JNES Journal of Near Eastern Studies
JQR Jewish Quarterly Review
JSAS Journal of the Society for Armenian Studies
JSHRZ Jüdische Schriften aus hellenistisch-römischer Zeit
JSJ Journal for the Study of Judaism in the Persian, Hellenistic
and Roman Periods
JSJ Supp. Journal for the Study of Judaism: Supplement Series
JSNT Journal for the Study of the New Testament
JSNT Supp. Journal for the Study of the New Testament: Supple-
ment Series
JSOT Journal for the Study of the Old Testament
JSOT Supp. Journal for the Study of the Old Testament: Supple-
ment Series
JSP Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha
JSP Supp. Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha: Supplement
Series
JSQ Jewish Studies Quarterly
JSS Journal of Semitic Studies
KEK Kritisch-exegetischer Kommentar über das Neuen
Testament
LCC Library of Christian Classics
LCL Loeb Classical Library
LLC Literary and Linguistic Computing
MedArch Medieval Archaeology
MES Middle Eastern Studies
MTZ Münschener theologische Zeitschrift
NIGTC New International Greek Testament Commentary
NovT Novum Testamentum
NovT Supp. Supplements to Novum Testamentum
OBO Orbis biblicus et orientalis
OCP Orientalia christiana periodica
OLA Orientalia lovaniensia analecta
OrChrAn Orientalia christiana analecta
OTL Old Testament Library
OTP Old Testament Pseudepigrapha. Ed. J. H. Charlesworth. 2
vols. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1983–85
OtSt Oudtestamentische Studiën
PAAJR Proceedings of the American Academy of Jewish Research
PBH Patma-banasirakan handês
xii abbreviations

PO Patrologia orientalis
PVTG Pseudepigrapha Veteris Testamenti Graece
RB Revue biblique
REArm Revue des études arméniennes
REJ Revue des études juives
RelSRev Religious Studies Review
RevQ Revue de Qumrân
RHPR Revue d’histoire et de philosophie religieuses
RNT Regensburger Neues Testament
RSR Recherches de science religieuse
SANT Studien zum Alten und Neuen Testaments
SBFA Studii biblici Franciscani analecta
SBLDS Society of Biblical Literature Dissertation Series
SBLEJL Society of Biblical Literature Early Judaism and its
Literature
SBLMS Society of Biblical Literature Monograph Series
SBLRBS Society of Biblical Literature Resources for Biblical Study
SBLSBS Society of Biblical Literature Sources for Biblical Study
SBLSCS Society of Biblical Literature Septuagint and Cognate
Studies Series
SBLSymS Society of Biblical Literature Symposium Series
SBLTT Society of Biblical Literature Texts and Translations
SEAug Studia ephemeridis Augustinianum
SHR Studies in the History of Religions (supplement to Numen)
SJ Studia Judaica
SJLA Studies in Judaism in Late Antiquity
SNTSMS Society for New Testament Studies Monograph Series
STDJ Studies on the Texts of the Desert of Judah
StPB Studia post-biblica
SUNT Studien zur Umwelt des Neuen Testaments
SVTP Studia in Veteris Testamenti pseudepigraphica
TDOT Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament. Ed. G. J. Botter-
weck, H. Ringgren, and H.-J. Fabry. Tr. J. T. Willis,
D. E. Green, and D. W. Stott. 12 vols. Grand Rapids:
Eerdmans, 1974–
TDNT Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. Ed. G. Kittel
and G. Friedrich. Tr. G. W. Bromiley. 10 vols. Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans, 1964–1976.
THKNT Theologischer Handkommentar zum Neuen Testament
 abbreviations xiii

TLG Thesaurus linguae graecae: Canon of Greek Authors and Works.

Edited by L. Berkowitz and K. A. Squitier. 3d ed. Oxford,
1990
TLZ Theologische Literaturzeitung
TSAJ Texte und Studien zum antiken Judentum
TUGAL Texte und Untersuchungen zur Geschichte der altchrist-
lichen Literatur
VC Vigiliae christianae
VCSup Supplements to Vigiliae christianae
VT Vetus Testamentum
VTSup Vetus Testamentum Supplements
WMANT Wissenschaftliche Monographien zum Alten und Neuen
Testament
WUNT Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament
ZA Zeitschrift für Assyriologie
ZAW Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft
ZNW Zeitschrift für die neutestamentliche Wissenschaft
 INTRODUCTION

This volume honors Michael E. Stone on the occasion of his sixty-

fifth birthday. It is presented in recognition of his luminous contri-
bution to the research and teaching of post-biblical Judaism and
early Christianity as well in gratitude for the years of guidance and
friendship which so many of us have enjoyed. It is also an oppor-
tunity to say thank you to those dearest to Michael—to Nira, his
“helper and partner,” their children Aurit and Dan, and now their
grandchildren Paz, Moran and Yarden—for allowing us to feel part
of the Stone family in so many different ways.
Michael Edward Stone was born in Leeds, UK on October 22, 1938,
and was raised in Sydney, Australia, receiving his B.A. in Semitics
and Classics from the University of Melbourne in 1960. In that year,
out of both deep personal conviction and strong family commitment,
Michael came to Israel and began his lifelong relationship with
Jerusalem and the Hebrew University. He then traveled to Cambridge,
Massachusetts and in 1965 completed his Ph.D. in Near Eastern
Languages and Civilizations at Harvard University, under the direction
of Frank Moore Cross.
In 1966, following a one-year appointment at the University of
California at Santa Barbara, Michael returned to Jerusalem and took
up a permanent faculty position at the Hebrew University, where he
is today the Gail Levin de Nur Professor of Religious Studies as well
as Professor of Armenian Studies. During almost forty years of service
at the Hebrew University, Michael has at various times chaired three
different departments, served on countless faculty and university com-
mittees, directed scores of theses and dissertations and left his mark
on several highly distinct areas of research and teaching. Two par-
ticular contributions demand special attention. Michael single-hand-
edly pioneered the study of Armenian language, literature and history;
he has made Jerusalem (largely through his own scholarship and
industry) one of the important centers of Armenian studies in today’s
academic world. Furthermore, he has accomplished this through
intensive, warm relations with the Armenian communities in Jerusalem
and throughout the world. No less inspired was the drive and vision
xvi introduction

with which Michael founded the Orion Center for the Study of the
Dead Sea Scrolls in 1995. In so doing, he realized a longstanding
dream to integrate the study of the Scrolls with that of the vast body
of Second Temple literature and to make the Hebrew University of
Jerusalem the home for this new integrative and interdisciplinary
research. Michael served as the Orion Center’s Director during its
first three years and continues to chair its Academic Committee and
to play an active role in the life of the Center.
Michael’s influence on the academic study of early Judaism and
Christianity, however, extends far beyond the lecture halls and seminar
rooms of Givat Ram and Mount Scopus. Indeed, he has proven him-
self an energetic and enthusiastic teacher and researcher within the
context of at least a half-dozen leading universities and institutes world-
wide. During the late 1970s and early 1980s Michael was a long-
term visiting professor at the University of Pennsylvania. He also has
enjoyed visiting professorships at the University of Melbourne, Harvard
Divinity School, Yale University, Leiden University, and served as
the Distinguished National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)
Visiting Professor at the University of Richmond. Michael has been
a frequent Fellow-in-Residence at the Netherlands Institute of Advanced
Studies (NIAS) and most recently was honored as a Kluge Distinguished
Visiting Senior Fellow at the Library of Congress (Washington, D.C.).
He directed, together with Gary A. Anderson, a NEH Summer
Seminar on “Adam and Eve in Jewish and Christian Tradition,” which
convened both at the University of Virginia (1993) and at the Hebrew
University (1996).
Michael’s “extramural” academic activities have been no less exten-
sive. He played an instrumental role in the formative period of the
Pseudepigrapha Group of the Society of Biblical Literature, serving
for a decade (1972–1982) on its steering committee and on the edi-
torial board of the SBL Pseudepigrapha Series. This was truly a
renaissance period in the study of post-biblical literature, one of
whose most important and influential expressions has been Michael’s
volume Jewish Writings of the Second Temple Period (1984) for the
Compendia project. In more recent years, he has served on the edi-
torial boards of both the Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha and
Dead Sea Discoveries. While for many of us this might seem a more
than adequate level of scholarly cooperation, we should remember
that the far greater part of Michael’s organizational efforts over the
 introduction xvii

last two decades has been devoted to the creation of an interna-

tional framework for Armenian Studies—an aspect of his activity
which demands proper and fitting treatment in another context.

When we think of Michael’s scholarly contribution, our first thoughts

are undoubtedly of a record of publication which is dazzling in both
its depth and breadth. By latest count, there stand on the shelves
or are currently in press no fewer than fifty volumes which Michael
has either authored or edited, in addition to more than two hun-
dred and fifty published articles and reviews. Lest anyone fear that
the pace has slackened at all, Michael’s most recent bibliography
indicates three monographs in preparation and fifteen articles in press
at the moment. To even begin to do justice to Michael’s contribu-
tion to the study of the vast body of Second Temple period litera-
ture and its subsequent Jewish and Christian transmission, as well
as to the history of religious experience, praxis, and thought, would
require a full-length essay in its own right. In the present context,
only a few titles, representative of his lifelong interests and collabo-
rative efforts, will have to suffice.
Michael Stone launched his academic career with his dissertation
on Features of the Eschatology of IV Ezra (Harvard University 1965
[1989]). He continued to pursue this research into the 1980s with a
series of groundbreaking studies on the structure, meaning, and trans-
mission history of that text as well as examinations of the pivotal
nature of Ezra’s conversion experience. These studies came to ultimate
fruition in his authoritative commentary, Fourth Ezra, for the Hermeneia
series (1990).
It is possible, in overview, to speak of at least four distinct and
significant bodies of research which Michael has advanced. The first
found its expression in a series of formative articles on the nature
of apocalyptic thought and literature of the Second Temple period,
ranging from the fourth/third century origins of the Enoch books
through the visions composed in the wake of the Destruction. A sec-
ond critical area has been the investigation of both the early Jewish
sources for and the later transmission history of the Testaments of the
Twelve Patriarchs, particularly those of Levi and Naphtali. Third, espe-
cially during the last decade, we have witnessed the mapping of the
vast literature of Adam and Eve—the history of the “protoplasts”—
in the widest possible range of sources and languages extending far
xviii introduction

beyond antiquity into the Western Middle Ages as well as the churches
of Byzantium. Finally, a major area of his scholarly interest always
has been the tracing of the contours of Jewish and Christian apoc-
ryphal literatures within the Armenian tradition. As indicated ear-
lier, to even venture to survey Michael’s scholarship in the field of
Armenian studies lies far beyond the scope of this volume, although
mention should be made, nevertheless, of his monumental Album of
Armenian Paleography published in 2002. Perhaps the ultimate recognition
for these academic and scholarly contributions came in 2001, when
Michael received the first annual Landau Prize for lifetime achievement
in research in the Humanities.
Indeed, in the face of these manifold professional milestones and
personal achievements—teaching posts, research appointments, schol-
arly affiliations and a list of publications that makes one’s knees
weak—it may seem paradoxical to look elsewhere to detect Michael’s
greatest contribution to the study of religion in the ancient world.
Yet, not a few of us regard Michael’s creation of intense, rewarding
interpersonal frameworks of scholarship to be his true magnum opus.
Despite the innumerable hours which he has spent poring over texts
in the privacy of his study and the corresponding time invested in
the task of writing which makes that private investigation accessible,
Michael ultimately views scholarship as a powerfully social process.
Though sometimes perceived as the “lonely knight of (philological)
faith,” Michael’s deepest enjoyment has always been the collabora-
tive study of texts and problems—the ideal of hevruta.

An overview of Michael’s scholarly career quickly reveals the central

importance of friendship and cooperative investigation. During the
years of his appointment at the University of Pennsylvania, Michael
joined forces and shared students with Bob Kraft, playing a key role
in the direction of doctoral candidates as well as participating actively
in the “Philadelphia Seminar on Christian Origins.” While involved
closely with the working group on the Pseudepigrapha of the SBL,
Michael coauthored, with George Nickelsburg, the anthology Faith
and Piety in Early Judaism (1982)—a volume that still figures promi-
nently in the teaching of the field. During this same period, Michael
was also forging strong academic and personal relations with schol-
ars of another city: Leiden in the Netherlands. There, Michael has
worked closely with colleagues such as Marinus de Jonge, Jaap
Mansfeld, Luk van Rompay and David Runia—as well as, on mat-
ters Armenian, with Jos Weitenberg.
 introduction xix

This combination of study and friendship was best defined, perhaps,

by the long partnership between Michael and the late Jonas C.
Greenfield which spanned over two decades, ending sadly with Jonas’
sudden death in 1995. The Greenfield-Stone collaboration produced
nearly a dozen joint publications, culminating in their DJD edition
of the Aramaic Levi Document and the proximate publication of the full
textual edition with translation and commentary.
It is not only with his senior colleagues and contemporaries that
Michael has sought and encouraged collaborative research: a long
line of students, both from Jerusalem and abroad, have been initi-
ated into the finer points and demands of scholarship through joint
publication. A number of examples will have to suffice: together with
Esther Eshel, Michael has written on a number of Qumran texts
and brought to culmination the edition of Aramaic Levi; with Esther
Chazon, Michael has co-authored the DJD edition of 4QTime of Right-
eousness and co-edited two volumes of the proceedings of the Orion
Center’s annual symposia: Biblical Perspectives (1998) and Pseudepigraphical
Perspectives (1999). With Gary Anderson, he co-authored two editions
(1994, 1999) of A Synopsis of the Primary Adam Literature and with Ted
Bergren, he co-edited the award winning Biblical Figures Outside the
Bible (1999 Biblical Archeology Society Prize).
Indeed, there has been no more striking or longstanding expression
of Michael’s commitment to the social context of scholarship than
the “Thursday night seminar” graciously hosted by the Stones in their
home for more than thirty years. The pinnacle of Michael’s academic
training of graduate students from Israel and all over the globe, the
seminar has provided a nurturing environment and an intellectually
challenging forum for students and scholars to share their work and
exchange ideas. More than three hundred students and invited guests
have attended the seminar: a bi-monthly, three-hour oasis where vir-
tually every text, language, and tradition from the ancient world is
fair ground for investigation and discussion. The working atmosphere
of the seminar also has found its way into a number of publications.
Notable in this regard was the appearance of the seminar’s long term
research project on literature and traditions associated with the
prophet Ezekiel in the volume The Apocryphal Ezekiel, jointly edited
by Michael, Ben Wright and David Satran, with contributions from
an additional seven members of the seminar. Several years ago, scores
of Thursday night veterans gathered at the annual meeting of the
Society of Biblical Literature held in Boston (1999) in order to mark
the thirtieth anniversary of the seminar and to pay tribute to Michael.
xx introduction

In a very real sense, the “Thursday night seminar” finds its natural
extension in this volume, which offers twenty-five diverse investigations
by many of Michael’s closest colleagues, co-authors, and doctoral
students, both past and present. The articles are organized under
four generic headings—Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, Dead Sea Scrolls,
Philo of Alexandria, and Early Christian Literature —though many of the
pieces overlap two or even three of these categories. We hope that
the range of texts, periods, and disciplines represented in the volume
is in itself at least a partial reflection of the breadth and interdisciplinary
character of Michael’s own scholarship. Certainly the international
character of Michael’s academic career and scholarly influence are
evidenced by the contributors, and the editors have chosen to preserve
the flavor of their manifold and varied voices and styles. Ultimately,
the volume is an attempt to continue our conversation with Michael
in the spirit of the intellectual openness and generosity that has
always defined his own efforts. Inspired by his own seminal article
on “Lists of Revealed Things in the Apocalyptic Literature” (1976),
we have entitled this Festschrift: “Things Revealed”: Studies in Early
Jewish and Christian Literature in Honor of Michael E. Stone.

There are, of course, still other sides of Michael which do not easily
submit to a review of this sort and are generally less well known. One
thinks of his enormous love of literature, especially English poetry, as
well as his own contributions to that genre. So too, despite his unre-
pentantly “textual” persona, Michael has always led a somewhat
covert “archeological” existence. For example, while his intensive work
on the “Rock Inscriptions and Graffiti Project” is well-known and has
issued in numerous publications, few are aware of Michael’s love of
the deep desert and its beauty—see his soon-to-be-published Sinai
Diary! Similarly, not a few of his articles on the Armenian presence
in the Holy Land have a very substantial fieldwork dimension. Most
recently, one thinks of Michael’s close cooperation with David Amit
on the publication of the spectacular discovery of the medieval Jewish
cemetery in Eghegis, in the Vayots Dzor region of Armenia.
Finally, there is for us all—colleagues, students, friends—the model
of Michael as not only scholar and teacher but equally paterfamilias.
Nira, Aurit and Danny have always been Michael’s true “collabo-
rators” in his career and his achievements. (Nira and Michael are,
of course academic partners in the very real sense: the joint fruits
 introduction xxi

of Michael’s textual acumen and Nira’s visual expertise are about to

appear in dual monographs from the Chester Beatty Library in
Dublin.) Moreover, the Stone home and household has always been
the active scene and encompassing context of Michael’s research and
teaching. In an age where lifestyles are increasingly centrifugal and
the center often does not hold, Michael and his family have been
an exemplum of integrity.
In short, it is in deepest gratitude and with the desire that we be
graced with his scholarship and friendship in the decades to come—
μyrç[w ham d[—that we offer Michael this volume.

Acknowledgements
This volume could not have been brought to fruition without the dedi-
cation, long hours, and wisdom of our third co-editor, Ruth Clements,
who serves as Chief of Publications at the Orion Center. We would
also like to acknowledge the expert proofreading job by our colleague
Betsy Halpern-Amaru, as well as the meticulous bibliographical and
technical assistance provided by Orion Research Assistant Shelly
Zilberfarb-Eshkoli, joined as the volume was nearing completion by
Orion Intern Gunnar Magnus Eidsvåg and Michael’s doctoral stu-
dent Vered Hillel. Thanks also go to series editors John J. Collins
and Florentino García Martínez, who were receptive to the project
from its inception, as was our publisher, Hans van der Meij. Also
at Brill, Mattie Kuiper and Willy de Gijzel were most helpful in
providing the materials necessary for us to prepare the bound copy
of the manuscript presented to Michael during the dinner in his
honor at the Ninth Orion Symposium. The dinner was impeccably
organized by Orion administrative manger Ariella Amir.
We owe a debt of gratitude to Michael’s brother, Jonathan Stone,
for making the long journey from Australia for this occasion and for
sharing with all present his personal insights and anecdotes; to
Michael’s longtime colleague, Harold W. Attridge, who graciously
agreed to reveal the secret of this Festschrift in his letter of appre-
ciation read at the dinner and published herein; and to our dear
friend and fellow Stone seminar participant Benjamin G. Wright,
who supplied wise counsel and expertise from the initial planning
sessions through the editing of this introduction for its reading at
the celebratory presentation. Finally, we thank the bodies that support
xxii introduction

the Orion Center—the Orion Foundation, the Sir Zelman Cowen

Universities Fund, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem—for pro-
viding the resources required to prepare the volume for publication.

Esther G. Chazon
David Satran
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
January 2004/Shevat 5764
 MICHAEL E. STONE: AN APPRECIATION

Frank Moore Cross

Harvard University

Shortly after Michael Stone came to Harvard University in the early

sixties, he sat down with me in the Harvard Semitic Museum to dis-
cuss his academic program. He proposed a major in the Judaism of
the Greco-Roman age, a subject I later discovered he already knew
more about than I. My own interest in the field had been stimulated
by my abrupt emersion in the Qumran finds some years earlier. In
any case we agreed on his major and then discussed the area to serve
as his minor. Persian and Zoroastrianism seemed an appropriate
area. Consulting with the professor of Iranian, Michael learned that he
would have to prepare himself in comparative Indo-European languages
including Sanskrit before tackling the Avesta, his primary interest—
otherwise the program would not be considered serious enough for
a minor. Michael Stone, needless to say, was not afraid of languages.
He was trained in classical languages to which he added both ancient
and modern Semitic tongues, not to mention modern European lan-
guages. He did wish to finish his doctorate before he was middle
aged. Perhaps, we decided, he should elect rather to study Armenian,
a richer and more immediately useful field for the study of the
Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha. So he became the Hebrew University’s
first Ordinarius in Armenian Studies. He was later to add to his title
of Professor of Armenian Studies the further title of Gail Levin de
Nur Professor of Religious Studies.
Not only does he hold two professorships, but his publications are
in excess of those expected from two chairs. He has written more than
fifty books and monographs as well as more than 250 articles divided
between Armenian studies and studies of the Jewish literature of the
Second Temple Period. To be sure most of his work on Armenian
texts has dealt with Armenian translations of Jewish apocryphal and
pseudepigraphical works, so that there is integrity in his labors in the
two fields. In my judgment he is the leading scholar in both these areas
of his work, a master of detailed and exacting textual and philological
analysis on the one hand, and on the other hand having a vision
xxiv frank moore cross

of the whole, the elements and structure which constitute apocalyptic.

Moreover, he has a unique grasp of the overall historical developments
in the Judaism of the Greco-Roman era which differentiate it from
the Judaism both of late biblical times and of the rabbinic period
that follows.
His magnum opus (though more than one of his works competes for
this designation) is his great commentary on Fourth Ezra. Here his
grasp of detail and understanding of the place of Fourth Ezra in the
sweep of the religious literature and history of the era combine
exquisitely in a commentary which will not be replaced for a number
of generations (if ever). Another volume that stands out in his author-
ship—at least in my restricted knowledge of his work—is his Selected
Studies in Pseudepigrapha and Apocrypha. I must single out one brief paper,
“Three Transformations in Judaism: Scripture, History, and Redemp-
tion.” It is a gem, in brief compass opening to scholar and layman
the essential logic of the history of Judaism in this crucial era.
I must confess that one of my favorite little volumes of his is The
Armenian Inscriptions from the Sinai, one of a series of volumes pub-
lishing inscriptions and graffiti of Armenian pilgrims, a project which
has culminated in the Album of Armenian Paleography of which Michael
Stone is editor-in-chief. The inscriptions in question are of particu-
lar interest in illuminating the typological development of the earli-
est Armenian writing. I suppose the little volume is of some sentimental
value to me as a palaeographer delighted to see a former student
pursuing the subject, and, if I am honest, because Michael has ded-
icated the volume to me—although I am unable to read the book.
(I did learn the Armenian alphabet to follow his sequence dating.)
One may be surprised to discover that Michael Stone has traipsed
off on long expeditions to the Sinai collecting forgotten inscriptions.
Somehow it seems to me just the kind of thing Michael would do,
and with extraordinary success.
Among the major projects initiated by Michael Stone is the Orion
Center for the Study of the Dead Sea Scrolls and Associated Literature.
He has taken an interest in the Dead Sea finds from the beginning,
and has been an editor of a number of Qumran texts often in asso-
ciation with colleagues or former students.
I could go on at length in this appreciation of Michael Stone, but
however long would still fail to mention much of importance in his
writings and activities. He is a most accomplished scholar—a scholar
of great energy, of great imagination, and of great discipline—in
whom his former teacher takes enormous pride.
 FESTSCHRIFT PRESENTATION: LETTER TO MICHAEL*

Harold W. Attridge
Yale Divinity School

Dear Michael:
It is a joy to celebrate with you on this occasion your scholarly ac-
complishments and the gifts that you have brought to our common
enterprise.
I well remember our first meeting. It was at a party at the home
of John Strugnell in Arlington, Massachusetts. You were at the time
a visiting professor at Harvard and I, a young doctoral student, as
self-important as folk at that stage of life can be. I thought at the
time that I knew something about Jewish literature and history of
the Second Temple period. After all, I had taken courses from Frank
Cross, John Strugnell and the New Testament faculty at Harvard!
But at that party we had a conversation, and in your gently prob-
ing way you asked for my opinion on the then hot topic of “apoc-
alypticism.” The conversation was, I confess, rather like a Socratic
dialogue, where I soon turned into the befuddled Euthryphro or
Lysias, reduced to a state of aporia. I went away from that con-
versation chastened, but more importantly impressed, by the breadth
of your knowledge, the incisiveness of your judgments, the persis-
tence that led you to pursue the truth of the matter.
Over the years since then I have come to appreciate all the more
the qualities that were manifest in that first encounter, as well as
many others. Most memorable perhaps were the sessions of the sem-
inar at your home in Jerusalem, where you and Nira so graciously
hosted mature and budding scholars from around the world. You
brought together there, as you have in many of your scholarly endeav-
ors, talented people with very diverse interests—philological, socio-
historical, literary. The one sine qua non was the competence to read

* Editors’ note: This letter was read by Harry Attridge at the presentation of the Festschrift
to Michael Stone, during the Ninth International Symposium of the Orion Center for the Study of
the Dead Sea Scrolls and Associated Literature. The Symposium, “Text, Thought, and Practice in
Qumran and Early Christianity,” co-sponsored with the Hebrew University’s Center for the Study
of Christianity, was a fitting context to honor Michael Stone’s contributions across these disciplines.
xxvi harold w. attridge

ancient sources with care and the willingness to contribute to the

give and take of serious scholarly conversation. All of us who have
participated in that seminar or in conversations with you at inter-
national congresses have learned from one another and from you.
We have benefited from those conversations as the broader learned
world has benefited from your scholarship; from your magisterial
commentary on 4 Ezra, your work on Armenian literature, art, and
epigraphy, your explorations of Jewish intellectual and social history
in the Second Temple period. Particularly as a specialist in Armenian
you have opened paths to new resources important for the history
of both Jews and Christians.
You have been a path-breaker and a supportive colleague to many
of us in the scholarly world, in many and diverse ways, through
your organization of scholarly interchanges, through your participa-
tion in the Society of Biblical Literature, and not least of all, through
the work of the Orion Center.
It is my great pleasure to celebrate your contributions to our com-
mon life through the presentation of this Festschrift. It is a token of
thanks and esteem, but also an invitation to continue the conversa-
tions, multos ad annos.
APOCRYPHA AND PSEUDEPIGRAPHA
 THE THIRD SIBYL REVISITED

John J. Collins
Yale University

The third book of Sibylline Oracles, in the standard collection, runs to

829 verses, and is one of the longer texts that can be attributed to
Hellenistic Judaism outside of Philo’s writings. The attention it has
received in recent scholarship is hardly proportional to its length.
To my knowledge, the recent dissertation of Rieuwerd Buitenwerf 1
is the first full monograph devoted to this text since that of Valentin
Nikiprowetzky, more than thirty years ago.2 There have, of course
been several other treatments in the intervening years, in connec-
tion with other Sibylline books or with Hellenistic Jewish literature.3
Nonetheless, the Sibyl has not been very prominent in recent schol-
arship, and has evidently fallen from the lofty perch that won her
a place on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
Ironically, when the Sibyl was at the height of her fame in the
Middle Ages, the books attributed to her were known only from scat-
tered quotations. One may fairly say that the recovery and subsequent
analysis of these books, beginning in the mid-sixteenth century, went
hand in hand with the decline of her reputation. Medieval Christianity
had venerated her as a pagan prophetess. Critical scholarship con-
cluded that her oracles were Jewish or Christian forgeries, and often
tedious besides.4

1
R. Buitenwerf, Book III of the Sibylline Oracles and its Social Setting, With an Introduction,
Translation and Commentary (SVTP 17; Leiden: Brill, 2003).
2
V. Nikiprowetzky, La Troisième Sibylle (Études juives 9; Paris: Mouton, 1970).
3
J. J. Collins, The Sibylline Oracles of Egyptian Judaism (SBLDS 13; Missoula, Mont.:
Scholars Press, 1974); “The Sibylline Oracles,” in OTP, 1:354–80; Between Athens and
Jerusalem: Jewish Identity in the Hellenistic Diaspora (2d ed.; The Biblical Resource Series;
Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000), 83–97, 160–65; M. Goodman, “The Sibylline
Oracles,” in E. Schürer, The History of the Jewish People in the Age of Jesus Christ (175
B.C.–A.D. 135) (3 vols.; rev. ed.; Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1987), III.1:618–53;
J. M. G. Barclay, Jews in the Mediterranean Diaspora: From Alexander to Trajan (323 BCE–117
CE) (Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1996), 216–28; E. S. Gruen, Heritage and Hellenism: The
Reinvention of Jewish Tradition (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998), 269–91;
H. Merkel, Die Sibyllinen ( JSHRZ 5.8; Gütersloh: Mohn, 1998), 1057–1080; J.-D.
Gauger, Sibyllinische Weissagungen (Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1998).
4
Buitenwerf, Book III, 5–64, provides an excellent history of research.
4 john j. collins

Among the Sibylline books of the standard collection, Book Three has
received more attention than any other, partly because it has been
deemed to be the oldest book in the collection. In this case, there has
been a significant degree of consensus on the major critical issues
regarding its literary character and the time and place of its composi-
tion. This consensus was worked out in the nineteenth century and
solidified above all in the work of Johannes Geffcken at the beginning
of the twentieth.5 While there have been many variations in detail,
the great majority of commentators have held that it is a composite
work, but that it is possible to identify an original core, composed in
Egypt in the middle of the second century BCE. Nikiprowetzky chal-
lenged this consensus, by claiming that the book was a unity, composed
in the first century BCE in the time of Cleopatra.6 His claim did
not win much acceptance. Recently, however, the identification of
a core composition from the second century BCE has been challenged
vigorously by Erich Gruen.7 Buitenwerf, in his dissertation, goes far-
ther, rejecting not only the core composition and second century date,
but also the Egyptian provenance.8
Revisionism is the life-blood of scholarship, and these new pro-
posals have the advantage of revitalizing the discussion of a neglected
pseudepigraphon. In my opinion, however, the challenges are not
well founded, and the consensus that prevailed for most of the last
century still provides the most plausible context for the study of this
Sibylline book.

The Composition of the Book

The oldest manuscripts of the Sibylline Oracles date from the four-
teenth and fifteenth centuries CE. It is generally acknowledged that
the first 92 verses of the third book originally constituted the end of
a different book, the second, while Sib. Or. Fragments i and iii were
probably part of the now missing beginning of Book Three.9 Lactantius

5
J. Geffcken, Komposition und Entstehungszeit der Oracula Sibyllina (TUGAL n.F. 8.1;
Leipzig: Hinrichs, 1902), 1–17. Geffcken also produced the standard edition of the
Sibylline Oracles, Die Oracula Sibyllina (GCS 8; Leipzig: Hinrichs, 1902).
6
Nikiprowetzky, La troisième Sibylle, 206–17.
7
Gruen, Heritage and Hellenism, 269–79.
8
Buitenwerf, Book III, 124–34.
9
Ibid., 65–91.
 the third sibyl revisited 5

(ca. 250–317 CE) cites several passages from these fragments and
from Book Three, and attributes them to the Erythrean Sibyl, “since
she inserted her true name into the book and foretold that she would
be called the ‘Erythrean’ although she was of Babylonian descent.”10
Passages cited, in addition to those from the fragments, are Sib. Or.
3:228–29, 618, 619–23, 741–43, 763–66, 775, 788–92 and 815–18.
It would seem then that Lactantius knew the book in substantially
its present shape, but it should be noted that lengthy sections of the
book are not attested. Clement of Alexandria (ca. 150–215 CE) cites
Sib. Or. 3:586–88 and 590–94. Theophilus of Antioch (second cen-
tury) cites Sib. Or. 3:97–103 and 105. The passage about the tower
of Babylon, in Sib. Or. 3:97–107, was cited by Alexander Polyhistor,
who compiled his work in the period between 80 and 40 BCE.11
On the basis of these attestations, Buitenwerf claims that “Sib. Or.
III must have existed before 40 BCE,” and that it can be concluded
“that Sib. Or. III was written by a Jew sometime between 80 and
40 BCE.”12 Both conclusions are blatant non-sequiturs. Only a small
passage (Sib. Or. 3:97–107) is attested before the second century of
the Common Era. We may reasonably infer that this passage was
part of a larger Sibylline book, and even that that book was a form
of what we now know as Book Three, but not that the book already
existed in its present form. Buitenwerf offers no argument whatever
for the terminus a quo. Presumably he relies on the fact that some
passages in Sibylline Oracles 3 are universally acknowledged to date
from the first century BCE; but if Polyhistor knew the work, or part
of it, between 80 and 30 BCE we should expect that it was com-
posed some time earlier than that. Buitenwerf ’s conclusion assumes
that Sibylline Oracles 3 was composed ab initio as a literary unity, by
an author who had an integral view of the whole. He grants that this
author drew on earlier sources but argues that “in establishing the
meaning of the author’s final text, however, it is methodologically
unwarranted to separate passages which can be seen to be based on
earlier sources from other passages, since from the author’s point of
view all of these passages formed an integral part of the literary
unity he was creating.”13 Buitenwerf ’s demonstration of the supposed

10
Lactantius, Divine Institutes 1.6.13–14. Cf. Sib. Or. 3:813–14.
11
J. Strugnell, “General Introduction, with a Note on Alexander Polyhistor,”
OTP, 2:777–79.
12
Buitenwerf, Book III, 130.
13
Ibid., 124–25.
6 john j. collins

literary unity, however, is an outline of “structure” which is little more

than a table of contents.14 He offers no explanation of the supposed
coherence of the book.
Buitenwerf ’s claim of literary coherence in Sibylline Oracles 3 con-
trasts sharply with other recent assessments of the book. According
to Martin Goodman in Schürer’s revised History of the Jewish People
in the Age of Jesus Christ, “it is unfortunately not the case that each
Book formed an original whole; individual Books also in part com-
prised an arbitrary number of individual passages. . . . Obviously,
much was at first in circulation as isolated pieces and the collection
in which they subsequently found a place is fortuitous.”15 According
to Erich Gruen, “it seems clear that the third Book of the Sibylline
Oracles constitutes a conglomerate, a gathering of various prophecies
that stem from different periods ranging from the second century
BCE through the early Roman Empire.”16 While these judgments
may be extreme, they raise the serious possibility that the book may
be a collection of oracles, analogous to biblical prophetic books such
as Isaiah or Jeremiah, rather than the unified composition of a lit-
erary author. Pagan Sibylline oracles in antiquity were very brief,
often consisting of a verse or two.17 These oracles were distributed
by chrèsmologoi, who adapted them constantly to changing historical
circumstances. If these pagan oracles served at all as a model for
the Jewish sibyllist, we should hardly expect a coherent work of more
than 800 verses. Buitenwerf ’s assumption of literary coherence is
implausible, and in any case cannot be taken as a default position.
The literary structure discerned by Buitenwerf divides the book
into 6 sections. (Verses 1–92 are left out of account as constituting
the end of a different book.) The first section is identified with
Fragment i. The second consists of Fragment iii and Sib. Or. 3:93–161,
although the reason for grouping this material together is not appar-
ent. The remaining sections are marked by introductory formulae in
which the Sibyl exclaims that God inspires her to prophesy. These
formulae are found in 3:162–65; 3:196–98; 3:295–300 and 3:489–91.

14
Ibid., 139–43.
15
Goodman, “Sibylline Oracles,” 631.
16
Gruen, Heritage and Hellenism, 272. The fluidity of the Sibylline collection is also
emphasized by D. S. Potter, “Sibyls in the Greek and Roman World,” Journal of
Roman Archaeology 3 (1990): 471–83.
17
On the nature of pagan Sibylline oracles see H. W. Parke, Sibyls and Sibylline
Prophecy in Classical Antiquity (ed. B. C. McGing; London: Routledge, 1988), 1–22.
 Another Random Document on
Scribd Without Any Related Topics
intention to take it on board the “Fram,” which at that time was ready to
begin its journey north, and there to use it in the best possible way.
What immense areas would it not be possible to observe in an Arctic
trip if one only was able to rise a few thousand yards? By what I had
seen of the ice I was certain one could always find flat places to rise
from and to land on. But later experience showed me that it takes an
aviator to express an opinion about landing conditions amidst Polar
ice, and not an Arctic explorer. What the second considers to be a flat
plateau can be absolutely useless in the opinion of the first.
My first aeroplane was a Farman biplane mounted on skis. We
scarcely could have got any benefit from this. Later years’ experience
shows me that. The war broke out in the meantime and put a stop to
that part of my program. But then, as so often later in life, I
experienced the fact that an apparent obstacle often had the opposite
effect. Flying technique at that time took enormous steps forward; the
child shot up, grew, and learned to move on its own account.
In 1921 the world’s record for the longest sojourn in the air reached
about twenty-seven hours on a Junker machine in America. It was a
monoplane, built entirely of aluminum, and therefore specially suitable
for working in the Polar regions. Sun, cold, snow, and rain would not
hurt it. I was living at that time in Seattle, Washington, where “Maud”
lay, being equipped for a new journey north. As soon as that news
reached me my decision was made. Such a machine I must have at all
costs. With such an apparatus the impossible would become almost
possible. The door to the Unknown seemed to me to be opening, but
my hopes were dashed and the door remained locked for many years
still. The machine at last was obtained and Lieutenant Omdal
appointed to be its pilot. In May, 1922, we decided, as soon as we had
learned to know the machine, to fly from the works in New York over
America to Seattle. The engine failed as we were over the town of
Marion in Pennsylvania, and we had to make an irritating forced
landing in the Oil Fields. The machine was entirely ruined; a new one
was hastily ordered, sent through America by rail just in time to be
taken on board the “Maud.” Simultaneously the well-known American
Curtis Aeroplane Factory put at our disposal a small reconnoitring
machine. Therefore, as the “Maud” sailed in 1922 she was completely
equipped, not only for a trip through the ice, but also for exploration
from the air. The Curtis machine should be used for reconnoitring and
accompany “Maud” all the time. I promised myself endless results from
it. Whilst “Maud” went on right into the ice and explored sea, ice and
air, Omdal and I went ashore at Wainright on Alaska’s north coast from
whence we intended to trek as far as possible into the unknown
territory to the north of that Coast, but everything went to pieces. On
account of the stormy summer and autumn Omdal and I could not
leave the place as arranged, but must build a house and spend the
winter there.
In May, 1923, we were ready for flight, but already on our first trial
flight the Junker broke the whole of its underpart in landing and
became so damaged that all hope of repairing it had to be abandoned.
Thus we gathered no experience. Things went somewhat better
however with the little machine on board the “Maud.” A wireless
telegram announced that it had been twice in the air with Odd Dahl as
pilot and Wisting as observer, but it was crushed in the second landing.
So far as I understand these two flights had not been of long duration;
therefore it was scarcely possible to have studied anything of the
immense area. It is, however, certain that these two were the first to fly
over the actual drift ice. Thus we hear from them, for the first time, of
the great difficulties which flying in this district presents. It was
impossible from the air to determine the condition of the ice they said;
it appeared to be absolutely flat, but it was quite different as results
showed. The prospects now were not any brighter. On my return to
Seattle I had only my two empty hands and a ruined aeroplane which
nobody would have. I did not, however, give up, but continued to work
in order to get a new equipment. Nineteen twenty-four passed, up till
now, without luck. In September of the same year I went to the Norsk
Luftseiladsforeningen (Aero Club of Norway) and proposed that they
should work with me; I was received with open arms. Whilst they
should try to do what they could at home I should travel to America to
see what I could do there. I had already held some lectures on the
subject, and sat one morning in my hotel deeply engrossed in
reckoning out how long it would take me with my earnings to pay my
creditors and start a new flight. The result was not heartening. I found
out that if nothing unforseen happened I should be clear by the time I
was 110 years old! But see, the unexpected did happen just then. The
telephone rang and a voice said, “Are you Captain Amundsen?” (They
always called me Captain Amundsen in America, but as all the negro
conductors receive the same honor it does not make me proud.) “Yes, I
am.” “Well,” continued the voice, “I am Lincoln Ellsworth.” That was
how I became acquainted with the man to whom I should later owe so
very, very much. The Luftseiladsforeningen (The Aero Club) will
certainly agree with me when I say that without his assistance the
expedition could hardly have taken place. It is not my intention by this
to belittle the great and excellent work which the Club did; in deep
thankfulness will I always remember the names of the three members
of the Board with whom I came into direct touch: the president, Dr. Rolf
Thommesen, and the two members, Dr. Ræstad and Major Swerre.
Thanks to their energetic work, together with the State’s kindly aid, the
expedition was soon ready to start. During my stay in America all the
winter, the entire organizing of the work fell on these gentlemen, but
the technical part of the arrangements fell on First Lieutenant of the
Royal Norwegian Navy—Hjalmar Riiser-Larsen.
Hjalmar Riiser-Larsen had already taken part in the spring attempt
to get the expedition going, so he was quite familiar with everything. It
was therefore both with gladness and with trust that I was able to
telegraph to him $85,000—James W. Ellsworth’s gift—begging him to
order the two seaplanes. From this moment Riiser-Larsen got
permission for leave and was able to give himself up entirely to the
expedition. As a flying man he is so well known by every person in the
land that it is superfluous and stupid to mention more. But he has
dozens of other notable qualities which I need not enumerate and
which made him specially qualified to fill his difficult post. With such an
assistant a difficult trip becomes for the leader a pleasant and light
effort.
He was assisted in his work by First Naval Lieutenant Leif
Dietrichson and Flight Lieutenant Oskar Omdal. Both these gentlemen
had been in the spring fiasco and thus knew all the details. It is quite
unnecessary to talk about Dietrichson. His skill as a flyer is recognized
by all. His bravery and resolution will stand out clearly later in this
record. With his light outlook on life, his glad smile, and happy nature,
he was an invaluable comrade on the flight. Omdal is known. If things
went with him or against him it was all the same. Nothing seemed to
depress him. He stood beside me in my two unhappy attempts in 1923
and 1924, and you can believe that it took a real man to show courage
and keenness in a third attempt, but Omdal did not disappoint me. “So
long as you don’t give in,” he said to me, “you shall always find me
ready.” He is a marvelous being; he seems to have several limbs more
than the rest of us. He moves slicker and thinks quicker. It is
impossible to depress him. With three such men I knew that the
technical part of the expedition was in the very best hands. The
objective of the expedition was to trek in, as far as possible, over the
unknown stretch between Spitzbergen and the Pole in order to find out
what is there, or what isn’t there. It was not only to substantiate
evidence of land, but to make a geographical research. This
substantiation was as equally important as learning the composition of
the land. From Nansen’s, the Duke of the Abruzzi’s, and Peary’s
discoveries we had certainly good reason to believe that no land
existed in that part of the Arctic Ocean, but our knowledge must be
built on certainties, not on beliefs. Modern exploration insists on
certainties. How miserably our maps have suffered in this district just
on account of “beliefs.” Land has been put down instead of ocean,
ocean instead of land, all on account of these same “beliefs.” More
accidents have been caused by this than one would think; many
people have lost their lives.
Apart from this we hoped to be able to make a number of
meteorological observations which, even although they would not bring
us many rich scientific results, would still give us interesting
enlightenment. In the end we hoped, as at first, to harvest great and
rich experiences which could be, to us and to others, of the greatest
help when we once should be ready to start for the long arranged flight
from Spitzbergen to Alaska. I lay special weight on the fact that I hope
our experiences will be found of use by others. I do not belong to that
class of explorer who believes that the North Pole is a place for himself
alone. My outlook shows that I have an absolutely opposite disposition;
“the more the better,” say I. Rather, let all of us be at the same time at
the same place. Nothing stimulates like competition, nothing
encourages exploration more. How would it appear if, for example, a
man made public his intention to fly across the Polar regions, but for
some unforeseen reasons could not accomplish it? Should every one
therefore stay away from the place so long as the first one was alive?
It seems to me an absurdity which is little in keeping with the sporting
spirit one would expect to reign in these regions. “He who comes first
to the mill gets his grist first milled,” says an old proverb. I hope to be
able to make an attempt to fly from Spitzbergen to Alaska next
summer. I must not, however, declare this to be my private ground, but
I wish, on the contrary, that many will go there too. All the experience
which I have stands at their disposal.
The trend of a wireless telegram from Dr. Sverdrup on the “Maud”
in the summer of 1924 intimated that large tracts of land were not likely
to be found north of Alaska. This theory he has based after careful tide
observations. I have great faith in Sverdrup; I have never met a
cleverer man than he, in his own line, but I feel absolutely certain that
he will agree with me that one should go further in and explore the
place. Without having actually seen it one cannot substantiate the
evidence.
Our hope to get right along to the Pole was very small, for that our
radius of action was too limited. Apart from that I had not any great
interest in reaching the Pole, as I had always regarded Peary as being
the first on the spot. Our objective was only, therefore, to cover the
great distance by flying over it and over the great area we were
exploring.
On the 9th April all the long and many preparations were finished,
and we left Tromsö at five in the morning. The expedition had two
ships. The motor ship “Hobby,” which should bring the two seaplanes
up to Spitzbergen, and the Navy’s transport ship “Fram” which the
State had placed at our disposal for the undertaking. On board the
“Hobby” were Riiser-Larsen, Dietrichson, Omdal, Berge, the
photographer, and the Rolls-Royce mechanic Green.
On board the “Fram”—Captain Hagerup, the second in command
Lieut. Torkeldsen, ice-pilot Ness, Dr. Matheson, Director of the
Pisaverkene Schulte-Frohlinde with two mechanics Feucht and
Zinsmayer, the journalists Ramm and Wharton, the meteorologist Dr.
Bjerknes, the guide Calwagen, also Devold, the cook Olsen, Sailmaker
Rönne, Horgen, the chemist Zapffe, Lincoln Ellsworth and myself. This
may appear almost unbelievable, but that part of the journey was
regarded by us as one of the most anxious. It was still early in the year
and the fairway between Norway and Spitzbergen was anything but
safe for two smacks like ours. The “Fram” is a midsummer boat,
intended for an ice-free sea, sunny and calm. But in the month of April
one must not reckon with these three factors. One would be much
cleverer to expect lots of ice, no sun, and heavy storms, and for that
“Fram” is not a suitable ship. “Hobby” was more of an ice-ship and
would in general plow her way as well as any other, but this was an
extraordinary occasion. The tremendous cases which the flying boats
were packed in had no other place to lie but on deck and in
consequence of this “Hobby” became in very truth not much of a sea
ship. The ubiquitous prophet had foretold her death and her sinking,
and I must say that I was almost inclined to agree with him when I saw
the big boxes lifted in the air. After leaving Tromsö “Hobby” had
already given up trying to be a boat; she looked like a mass of gigantic
cases which was wandering along over the sea.
The arrangements were that both ships should keep together in
order to be of mutual assistance and cheer. It is always comforting in
the loneliness of the sea to be cheered by the near presence of
another ship; assistance too we might both have need of.
It was a dark unpleasant night as we left Tromsö—wet and black.
A foreign film photographer, who accompanied us to Spitzbergen,
showed his spirit by operating his camera under all conditions and
filming for all he was worth. (Had he wished to take a film of a dark
night he must in very truth have been lucky.) Just outside Skaarö
Sound we got into tremendous snow-storms and the meteorologists at
the same time announced that the storm center was in the west. I
decided along with the “Fram’s” captain, Hagerup, that it would be
advisable to go into Skaarö Sound, anchor there and wait. The
meteorologists thought that the bad weather would be of short
duration. We signaled to “Hobby”: “We shall anchor at Skaarö,” after
which we steered towards land. We lost “Hobby” in a snow shower. At
11:45 a.m. we anchored and expected “Hobby” to arrive soon.
Frequent blasts amidst thick snowfalls made the atmosphere
impenetrable. We waited in vain for our comrade.
At four o’clock p.m. the storm center passed and we set off again.
We passed close to Fugleö, peering and glancing into all the creeks
and inlets looking for “Hobby,” but there was nothing to be seen. We
understood, therefore, that she must have mis-read our signal and
steered in a direct course for Björneöen.
In spite of the officers’ and the men’s unchanging kindness and
willingness, the journey was not altogether pleasant. We were packed
as tightly together as it was in any way possible to pack human beings,
and then as the boat began to roll, so the air got thicker and thicker—I
refer to the inside air—and what under normal conditions would have
been perpendicularly hanging things, such as towels, coats, etc., all
stood right out from the wall in such a way that people began to feel
themselves a little uncomfortable—I say uncomfortable, for nobody
would ever be sea-sick! Now I have been at sea for over thirty years,
but I have yet to meet the person who will admit to being sea-sick. Oh,
no, not at all! Sea-sick? Far from it: only a little uncomfortable in the
stomach or the head. In my diary I believe I have written that there
were a number of sea-sick people on board, but I ask all the people to
excuse me if I have been mistaken! I am also so very frank in my diary
that I remark that I, too, am not so sure of myself, but that remark was
presumably only meant for my private eye. The night of the 10th was
particularly unpleasant: Zapffe, Ellsworth and I lay in the dining-room.
Zapffe reclined in a corner of the sofa looking very pale, but insisting
that he had never felt better in his life. Ellsworth and I lay in our
sleeping-bags and, should I judge from the sounds and movements I
heard and saw, I should be bold enough to say that we were in the
same condition of well-being as Zapffe. Everything that could tear itself
free did it, the chairs in particular appeared to have taken full
possession of the dining saloon; the tricks they performed during the
night were absolutely unbelievable. Now and again they performed
alone, now and again they united and performed in troops. They had
also been joined by a box of cigars which fell down and performed with
them, and I can remember how these cigars flew round our ears. In
spite of his paleness Zapffe had not lost his good-humor. “I thought I
was in Havana,” came calm and dry from him as the first cargo of
cigars struck him. I asked him if he would not be satisfied with Bremen,
but that he would not agree to at all. In the pantry, which lay beside the
saloon, there seemed to be a veritable and forcible jazz band now
playing. Which instrument was being used at the moment was not
quite clear to me, but in every case a zinc bucket was certainly doing
its best. The rolling calmed down on the following day and most of the
“souls” showed themselves on deck, with a pale sleepy look in their
faces. I asked one who seemed in a bad way if he had been sea-sick,
but I should never have done that. With cold scorn he replied that he
had never felt such a thing in his life. What he felt half a minute later
when a sudden roll landed him between two boxes and deprived him
of the last part of his breakfast I don’t know. Certainly not sea-sick!
It is astonishing to notice how people’s interests can change in one
moment. Yesterday we went round Tromsö and not the finest drug
store, or the most tempting grocery shop, or the best set-out
shoemaker’s window would have made us turn our heads to look at
them. But this afternoon one of the members of the expedition had
opened a box, which he had kept standing on the afterdeck, apparently
with a view to taking something out. In a second he was surrounded by
a curious crowd. The object of interest felt himself particularly flattered
by so much notice being taken of him and he took out one thing after
another. First came a tube of tooth paste. All necks were stretched,
each one longer than the other, to get a sight of the wonderful thing.
After that came a tablet of chocolate. What comments this brought
forth I am unable to say as my point of observation was so far away.
Certain is it, however, that the interest in the chocolate was quite
intense. A pair of shoes came next. Had they been new and fine, I
could have understood it. But that anybody could show any interest in
these old, worn, down-trodden shoes is to me unbelievable. A snow
storm closed the entertainment.
Word came that Björneöen was free from ice and we could
approach without fear of meeting any. At four o’clock in the morning of
the 11th we passed the island’s most southerly point. We had built on
the possibility of seeing “Hobby” there, but in vain. We sent Björneöen
a wireless and asked them to keep a lookout for “Hobby” and to inform
us immediately if they sighted her. Simultaneously we telegraphed to
King’s Bay and asked them for information regarding the ice conditions
there. Beside the island we ran into a southeasterly wind, which during
the day developed into a fresh breeze. At five o’clock in the afternoon
we came into small ice, but, steering a westerly course, got quickly
clear of it. On the 12th we passed through some fields of mush and
quite small ice. The “Fram” is far from being an ideal ship for ice
navigation, but so well did Captain Hagerup and Ice Pilot Ness guide
us through in such a careful and comfortable manner that they earned
our fullest appreciation. A less worthy man could have sent a boat
such as “Fram” to the bottom in much less ice than we passed
through. The atmosphere was impenetrable during most of the day. At
ten o’clock in the evening—in a little clear glow—land was discernible.
It was Quade Hoock in King’s Bay. At two o’clock we arrived at the
edge of the ice and moored fast to it. The “Knut Skaaluren,” a little
steamboat which had brought the two Directors, Brandal and Knutsen,
here, lay there already.
King’s Bay had been free from ice the whole winter. Only in the last
two days had the ice acquired a temperature of -26°c. We naturally
regarded this as a great misfortune as it seemed that we should be
prevented from getting in to the Coal Company’s quay where we were
to begin the unloading of our boats. So far from being a misfortune this
proved itself later to be our first and greatest piece of luck, that King’s
Bay was icebound.
At ten o’clock in the morning I went ashore in order to pay the
Directors a visit to see what they could do for us. The distance from
where we had moored the “Fram” up to the quayside was a good three
miles; there was a lot of water on the ice, dark and mushy. It was not
easy to see Ny Aalesund, which was snow covered. But the moment I
arrived at the quay and climbed from the ice a hand was stretched out
giving me a warm handshake and a cheery welcome. It was Director
M. Knutsen who, with the Company’s other Director, was to show us
the most glorious hospitality during the whole of our long stay in King’s
Bay. I may as well say it now as later, that without these practical
men’s assistance we could scarcely have brought our arrangements to
completion as they eventually were.
It was soon fixed up that all who were participating in the
expedition should come ashore and stay there where room must be
found for them. “Where there is room in the heart there is room in the
house,” they said. Nothing greater than the “heart room” of Knutsen
and Brandal could any one ever wish to find.
Now there was a matter which weighed on my mind—depressing
me in a high degree. Where was “Hobby”? I went on board the “Fram”
at eventide and walked up and down on the deck. It was about seven
o’clock at eventide when Horgen came up to me and said that he saw
something which stood high above the ice, and according to his
opinion only “Hobby” could present such an appearance. Up with the
glasses! Yes!—quite right, there came a heavy-looking box rustling and
crushing through the ice. “Hobby” itself I could not see even now, but I
could see that there was life on board. Every one ran around and
shouted, “‘Hobby’ comes!” “‘Hobby’ comes!” In a second all hands
were called on deck and to the accompaniment of ringing hurrahs
“Hobby” lay by the side of the ice. All was well on board. The first part
of the journey was over. Our boats were safely in King’s Bay. Honor
where honor is due and it should be given to the expedition’s airmen,
Captain Holm, Pilot Johannesen and the whole of “Hobby’s” crew. It
was no small act of seamanship which they had accomplished.

“FRAM” MOORED TO THE ICE AT THE EDGE OF

KING’S BAY
 UNLOADING
The next day was very wintry—sea fog with a temperature -10°.
We took advantage of this for the members of the expedition to flit
ashore and make themselves at home in the Coal Company’s station.
The airmen—Riiser-Larsen, Dietrichson, Horgen, Omdal, in company
with Ellsworth and Ramm—got their cozy little house. Zapffe and I
were quartered in the Directors’ house and the others in the hospital.
The sailing-boat workshop was cleared and prepared as a dining-
room. This was baptized “the salon.” Here the scepter was waved by
our steward, purser, chemist, and purveyor of entertainment. Yes, dear
steward, you won all hearts with your glad, happy spirit. To me you
were an invaluable and priceless aid with your dutiful and
conscientious work.
 THE GAMES ON MAY 17TH

THE PLANES WERE PUT TOGETHER NEAR THE

COAL COMPANY’S WORKSHOPS
The newly frozen ice, which prevented us from approaching the
quay, might have become embarrassing had not Captain Jensen of the
“Skaaluren,” on the 15th April, become tired of waiting and decided to
make an attempt to force it. The attempt was crowned with success in
the highest degree. Never, I believe, had the “Skaaluren” been so
absolutely astonished at herself. She broke through very quickly and
lay a short time afterwards by the quay. “Fram” and “Hobby” followed
behind her in line, and by the evening we all lay alongside the quay.
There we had a northerly breeze of about -13° c.—Mid-winter!
By the following day every one was fully occupied taking our
belongings ashore. Riiser-Larsen organized the work with the frequent
assistance of his comrades and the officers from the “Hobby.” At this
point I would like to hand out a few compliments to the crew of the
“Fram.” When and where they could help, they were always at hand.
Quick, skillful, and willing at all times. Fortunately the ice here was so
strong that one could discharge the seaplanes on to it. This was a
great help and lightened the work considerably. Everybody at the same
time hauled them along a natural slide towards land and placed them
outside the station-workshop, where all the necessary help was
obtainable. Director Schulte-Frohlinde from the Pisa Works, with his
two mechanics, Feucht and Zinsmayer, along with Omdal and the
Rolls-Royce mechanic, Green, who had got the very worst jobs,
remained in charge. In spite of snow and cold they continued “hard at
it” from morning until evening without any one ever hearing them
grumble once; but they were men of steel!
It was gratifying to see how the machines grew from day to day.
Frohlinde believed that he could have them completed by the 2nd of
May, and it very nearly proved so. There was another duty which had
to be carried out each day under the same difficult conditions and with
the same unabated energy. This was the weather report service. No
matter how it blew, no matter how it snowed, nor how bitterly cold it
was, Bjerknes and Calwagen were always “on the go.” Nothing
seemed to tire these two young scientists and the expedition owes
them the greatest gratitude for their splendid work. They were assisted
in their work by Devold, who was principally employed receiving
messages from the numerous stations in Europe, Canada, Alaska, and
Siberia. The weather report service is still in its swaddling clothes, but
there is no doubt that in time it will become a strong factor in our
progress. Already we could see the benefit to be derived from this
particular service by any expedition whether it should go north, south,
east or west.
Others of our “most occupied men” were the photographer Berge,
and the journalist Ramm. The first of these two could always be seen
with his camera in his hand and his tripod on his shoulder. He was
everywhere. One could not even blow his nose without Berge being
there to immortalize the event. Ramm kept the world advised of the
expedition’s progress; if we did anything, it was immediately
telegraphed. If we did not do anything, it was likewise immediately
telegraphed. His strongest competitors were the meteorologists; not
that they were giving news to the world’s press in competition with
Ramm. No, they did not do that, but they were in frequent use of the
wireless. Between the two parties there arose a burning question as to
which was the more important—the weather reports or the news
reports. The meteorologists voted for the weather, Ramm for the news.
And so it remained. Dr. Matheson acted as the “Fram’s” and the
expedition’s doctor. As a doctor he fortunately did not get much to do,
but it seemed safe and comforting to know that he was near if anything
should happen.
I now come to the expedition’s most occupied man. That was my
old traveling companion from the “Fram” and the “Maud” trips,
Sailmaker Rönne. Since he first joined my service for the “Fram”
expedition in 1910—fifteen years ago—any weakening in his work was
undiscernible by me. In view of what he did on this trip one could only
come to the conclusion that he had improved. He was the first man up
every single morning, and in full swing long before any one else. But it
was quite necessary for him to do this if he was to complete in good
time all the little orders which came streaming in to him every day in
large numbers. At one moment he was sewing shoes, soon afterwards
trousers, then tents and sleeping bags. He worked at the boats and
made the sledges ship-shape. His strongest forte was to bring along
with him everything that other people had forgotten. If anything was
missing any one could be absolutely sure that Rönne would be able to
help him out of the difficulty. His greatest service at this time was that
during the flight to the North he gave me a long knife made from an old
bayonet which was to prove our best ice-tool. It was during our last
dinner in the “salon” that he came to me and honored me with the
knife. I had a splendid clasp-knife already, but accepted his gift in order
not to offend him. I intended to lay it away in one or other of my lockers
as it was too big to carry about. But how it happened I cannot say—the
knife appeared in my rucksack and was of invaluable use to us later.
Ton after ton of ice has been shifted by my comrades and myself with
this same knife. When I travel next time I shall have at least a dozen
with me.
Our cook, Einer Olsen, could prepare a rum omelette—now, I must
not let my tongue run away with me—just as well as any chef in the
best hotel of any seaside resort, and that is not saying enough. Apart
from this he absolutely astonished us with what he called “gateau
danoise” (Olsen was a linguist). I sought in vain, from the point of view
of a baker, to analyze this confection, but without success. The nearest
I can describe it is a cross between a cream bun and a “gateau de
mille feuilles.” He got up still earlier in the morning than Rönne and
thus deprived him of his record-breaking honor.
Our stay in King’s Bay began really with the baptism of the “salon.”
That was on Sunday April 19th. The furniture of the “salon” was quite
different from what it originally had been. Its contents were composed
of a long board and four trestles. In addition to this, and on account of
the shortage of room elsewhere, it was necessary for the “salon” to
house the pantry. This stood beside the entrance. A little gramophone
supplied us with all the jazz we desired. In addition to this it could play
music! But what was missing in the way of furniture in the “salon” was
made up for by the culinary masterpieces. And here competition was
strengthened by originality. Yes, there were even a few who risked
saying that.... No, I won’t repeat it, as one says so many things. On the
evening of the christening there were twenty-six people round the
table. I see by my diary that the number was “legion,” but my diary has
to be discreet, so it keeps silent about the rest.
There is nothing particular to relate about the days which followed.
One followed the other just exactly as ordained by the almanac. Some
(yes, the most) were beautifully sunny and beautifully colored from the
magnificent glaciers. Others were overshadowed with fog and snow.
The day in the week which we looked forward to with the most
pleasure was not Sunday, as you might be inclined to believe, but
Friday. Every Friday at 5:30 p.m. there was a steam bath; a proper,
really good steam bath. There was nothing mean about the heat in this
as we had coal all around us, wherever we went, and wherever we
stood. It was far meaner as regards the quantity of water, but we did
not bother about that. The bath was naturally very popular. In the
morning the ladies had their turn; in the afternoon the Directors with
their staff along with the members of the expedition. Saturday was
bath day for the miners.
Over and above this a very important piece of work had to be done
in these days: i.e., getting the provisions and equipment ready for the
flight. In case it should interest anybody, I will here repeat my list
exactly as it appeared:

Provisions
Salt Beef 400 gr. per man per day
Chocolate 250 gr. „
Biscuits 125 gr. „
Dried milk 100 gr. „
Malted milk 125 gr. „
Total 1000 gr. kg.

Rucksack
1 change, diary, compass, matches tinder, housewife, snow
glasses, cup & spoon, pipe & tobacco, linen thread, sail-cloth gloves, 1
pr. ski-shoes, 1 long knife, 1 pr. skis, 2 staves, 1 pole, 1 sleeping-bag

Equipment Principally for the Machines

1 boat, 1 sledge, 1 tent, 1 medicine case, 1 Primus, petroleum,
reserve belts, 1 Meta cooking stove with plates, 2 sextants, 1 level,
navigating equipment, six small and 4 large smoke bombs, 1 cooking
pot, motor spare parts, tools, 2 snow shovels, 1 ice anchor, 1 log, 1
sun compass, 1 pair of glasses, ten plugs, meteorological instruments,
1 shot gun, 1 rifle, 400 cartridges, Colt revolver, 25 shots, senna grass,
benzine pump, hose and bucket, camera, films and plates, soldering
lamp.

* * * * *
On the 29th of April the “Fram” attempted to go to Green Harbour
to fetch and take the mail. However, she did not get far before the ice
stopped her. By dinner time the next day she had returned.
Ellsworth and I now went every day to the wireless station in order
to take the time signal from the Eiffel Tower so that we might check our
watches. We had each three watches for use on the flight. Fortunately
they never went wrong. We checked the time signals for fourteen days
before our departure and thus we were absolutely certain of the
correctness of our watches.
On the 4th of May, a strange restless and unsettling sort of day, we
began to long for the moment when we could leave. The
meteorologists announced that that particular morning would be a fine
opportunity to go and we were not long in replying, “All is ready.”
“Fram” and “Hobby” got orders to make ready to sail northwards and
all hands were called on deck to help to get everything in order. In the
meantime a northeasterly wind sprang up and retarded the mechanics
from completing the final little “finishing-off” touches. We were
therefore compelled to put off our intended start until the weather
improved. In the meantime the boats made ready and on the next
evening—May 5th—“Fram” and “Hobby” steered northwards in order
to reconnoiter round the Danske Öen to see if they could find a good
place for us to start off from on the ice. That evening we had -18° c. No
work could be done. On the 6th we received a wireless from the
“Fram” from South Gate which announced that the weather was very
uncertain and that we ought to wait. They announced also that they
had found no suitable starting place on the ice. The ice all around was
uneven and banked up and consequently useless for our purpose.
After the machines were ready to start we saw clearly that the
maximum weight of 2,600 kg., which the factory said we could carry,
was going to be considerably increased. We could see that if we had
to make the flight we must at least carry 3,000 kg.—perhaps more.
The two, Riiser-Larsen and Dietrichson, thought that it would be quite
possible to rise with this from the ice. Director Schulte-Frohlinde
doubted the possibility of this. The two former, however, had great
experience in rising from the ice and my trust in them was complete.
To rise from the water with this weight would hardly have been
possible. On the eighth evening “Hobby” came back announcing that
the ice conditions were bad, the weather was stormy and the
temperature as low as -23° c.
We decided, therefore, to wait some time hoping for an
improvement in the weather and a more reasonable temperature.
On the 9th N 25 left its “cradle” on Spitzbergen for the first time
and made a few trial runs on the ice. Everything went well and the pilot
was very satisfied. On the morning of the 11th “Fram” returned, thus
finishing this part. Now we were all ready to make use of the first
opportunity which the meteorologists should advise. The temperature
rose quickly and steadily and in the days that followed it was quite
clear that spring was coming.
The 17th of May dawned and was spent exactly as it should have
been. A salute in the morning, Olympic games, and a gala dinner in
the evening in the “salon.” On the 18th Dr. Bjerknes announced that
the prospects were so good that we should hold ourselves ready for a
flight at short notice. We were ready. The weather on the 19th was still
not exactly as the prophet wished it to be. In the meantime, however,
we made “all clear” and got the machines down to a definite starting
place where one could slide down a grade direct on to the fjord ice.
Local bad weather on the 20th prevented us from starting. The filling of
the petrol tanks was finished and by eventide we were absolutely
ready.
As I, on the morning of the 20th of May, stuck my nose out of the
window I realized at once, without further confirmation from our
weather prophets, that our day had arrived. It was brilliant summer
weather with a tiny breeze blowing from the fjord, exactly what the pilot
wished for. The starting time was fixed for four p.m. The sun was in a
favorable position for our sun compass and gave us the greatest aid
on our flight. Even at breakfast time we could notice that there was a
little excitement in the camp. Many of the members of the expedition,
who otherwise would still have been invisible during the time I usually
took my breakfast, had in this case already breakfasted and
disappeared. It was unnecessary to send a messenger round to say
the day had arrived. Every one was making his preparations for
departure and the different members could be seen with hands full of
private belongings disappear beside the machines and return empty-
handed. Each of these little journeys brought more weight and by the
time the last pin was fastened we were carrying a load of 3,100 kg., or
about 500 kg. more than we were supposed to carry. Director
Frohlinde had always insisted in his opinion that we ought to make
some trial trips. The airmen said, “No.” As the differences of opinions
will be disentangled later on I shall not say more about this here. All
the morning a crowd of people were crossing over to the starting place.
Everybody who could be there was on the spot. Dinner was taken in
the “salon” and if some one had come in by chance he would have
noticed something unusual going on. The only guests we had in the
“salon” were six Thermos flasks, set up ready for the road. These
contained chocolate; beside them were our only provisions for the
flight, and the box of Mrs. Clausen’s good oatcakes. The only person
who disturbed the dinner’s quiet and friendly course was the steward,
who thought he ought to wish his comrades a good journey and thank
them for assembling there. Thus was the last dinner at an end and the
“salon” again took on its old form as the Coal Company’s sailboat
works. “Sic transit gloria mundi.”
As I left my good and comfortable quarters in the house of the
Director, his good-natured housekeeper Berta stood there with two
packets, which she held out to me. “There is one for each machine,”
she said. “Just a little ‘snack’ for the journey.” Oh, Berta, could you but
see how gladly and with what warm thanks in our hearts we took the
delicious sandwiches and eggs carefully and slowly from the
packages, eating them with pleasure, as our last civilized meal for a
long time to come,—you would certainly be overjoyed!
At three o’clock in the afternoon we were all gathered beside the
machines. As I have already remarked—one is never ready. Director
Frohlinde went round and looked carefully at everything. Green, the
Rolls-Royce mechanic, listened first to the one and then to the other of
the motors. At four o’clock all four motors were warming up. It was a
sign for all of us that our hour was almost there. Both sun compasses,
which had been set at four o’clock, started going—and the motors
started humming. Whilst we put on our heavy flying clothes the two
flying men and observers did likewise, wearing similar garments—thick
underclothes of wool with leather on top. The point which I personally
had always been afraid of during a flight was the condition of my legs.
The tremendous speed, which necessarily causes a strong draught
and lowers the temperature, puts our shoes naturally to a very strong
test. It was not often that my experience proved of actual use to me,
but this time I really did get some good out of it. On my earlier journeys
it had often been necessary for me to stand hour after hour as
observer. When the temperature was below -50° c. and -60° c., which
often happened, one must have very special footwear. I found out then
that one ought to have good warm footwear on, preferably loose
leather stockings and leather shoes (such as the Eskimos wear), and
in addition to this the feet should be put into enormous canvas shoes
filled with senna grass, which forms a complete lining to the shoes and
renders protection to the feet. That time years ago we had taken no
Eskimo shoes, but used felt shoes with a pair of thin stockings and
above these we wore gigantic canvas shoes filled with large quantities
of senna grass. The result was brilliant. Not only did we not freeze, but
one or two grumbled because they were too warm. The pilots wore
thick leather gloves which gave complete protection to their hands.
Personally I wore only an old pair of woolen gloves as I had to write
continually. The mechanics were not so heavily clad, as they were
continually on the move, passing between the petrol store and the
motor, and for this reason they had to be lightly clad. As soon as we
were dressed the various members took their places. Ellsworth and I
were in the observation seats. Riiser-Larsen and Dietrichson were in
the pilots’ seats and the two mechanics, Feucht and Omdal, were
beside the motors. My place was in the observation seat of N 25,
which lay forward. In the seat behind me—the pilot’s seat—was Riiser-
Larsen and in the petrol store behind him was Feucht. In N 24 the
arrangements were the same for Ellsworth, Dietrichson, Omdal.
Feucht, who had accompanied Director Schulte-Frohlinde from Pisa,
was only taken on as a member of the expedition a few days before
the start; he had up to that time remained in the Factory’s service. He
is a German by birth and had been employed by the Factory for a long
time, being considered an exceptionally capable mechanic which will