Sven Hedin

Sven Anders Hedin was born on February 19, 1865, in Stockholm. Studying geology and geography under Ferdinand von Richthofen in Berlin, he dedicated his life to exploring the blank spaces of the Asian continent.

Between 1893 and 1935, Hedin mounted four monumental expeditions across the Taklamakan Desert, the Pamirs, and Tibet. He discovered the lost desert city of Loulan, charted the shifting lake Lop Nor, discovered the Transhimalaya mountain range, and pinpointed the geographical sources of the sacred Indus, Sutlej, and Brahmaputra rivers. His colossal cartographic and scientific publications filled dozens of volumes. Ennobled by King Oscar II in 1902—the last person to receive an hereditary Swedish nobility title—he was elected to the Swedish Academy.