What Is 1938–39 German expedition to Tibet

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Last updated: April 14, 2026

Quick Answer: The 1938–39 German expedition to Tibet was a scientific and occult-driven mission led by Ernst Schäfer, sponsored by Heinrich Himmler and the SS, aiming to explore Tibetan flora, fauna, and racial anthropology to support Nazi pseudoscientific theories.

Key Facts

The expedition took place from April 1938 to August 1939 and was led by zoologist Ernst Schäfer.
It was funded by the SS under Heinrich Himmler, who sought evidence for Aryan racial origins in Tibet.
The team included five German scientists and used advanced photographic and taxidermy techniques.
They collected over 2,000 animal specimens, including rare snow leopards and Tibetan wolves.
The expedition was the first Western scientific mission to receive official permission from the Tibetan government.

Overview

The 1938–39 German expedition to Tibet was a controversial scientific mission organized by Nazi zoologist Ernst Schäfer and backed by the SS under Heinrich Himmler. Officially, it aimed to study high-altitude biology, Tibetan wildlife, and ethnography, but it also pursued esoteric goals tied to Nazi racial ideology.

Operating during a period of rising global tensions, the expedition was granted rare access to Lhasa by the Tibetan government, making it the first German scientific team to do so. Despite its scientific veneer, the mission was deeply entangled with Nazi occultism and the search for evidence supporting the myth of an Aryan master race originating in Asia.

Ernst Schäfer led the expedition; he was a renowned zoologist and SS officer with prior experience in Tibet and a strong interest in high-altitude physiology.
The mission lasted from April 1938 to August 1939, spanning 16 months across remote regions of central and southern Tibet.
Heinrich Himmler, head of the SS, personally funded the expedition through the Ahnenerbe, a Nazi research institute focused on ancient mysticism and racial purity.
The team conducted extensive fieldwork, collecting over 2,000 biological specimens, including mammals, birds, and insects, many previously undocumented in Western science.
They used cutting-edge equipment, including 35mm motion picture cameras and portable taxidermy kits, to document wildlife and Tibetan culture on film and in preserved form.

Scientific and Occult Objectives

While publicly framed as a zoological and anthropological endeavor, the expedition had dual goals: legitimate scientific research and the pursuit of pseudoscientific racial theories central to Nazi ideology.

Racial Anthropology: The team measured skull shapes and physical traits of Tibetans to support the discredited theory that Aryans originated in Tibet or Central Asia.
High-Altitude Adaptation: Scientists studied how humans and animals survive in extreme elevations, data later used in German military aviation research.
Flora and Fauna Collection: Specimens of snow leopards, Tibetan foxes, and alpine birds were preserved and sent to SS research centers in Berlin.
Photographic Documentation: Over 17,000 photographs and 20,000 feet of film were shot, including rare footage of monasteries and nomadic life.
Occult Investigations: Members consulted Tibetan monks about ancient legends, seeking links between Nordic and Tibetan spiritual traditions.
Geopolitical Intelligence: The team mapped remote routes and assessed Tibet’s political stance, potentially aiding future Axis interests in Asia.

Comparison at a Glance

Below is a comparison of the 1938–39 German expedition with other contemporary scientific missions in Central Asia:

h>Lead Organization

Expedition	Year	Primary Focus	Notable Outcome
German SS Expedition	1938–1939	SS Ahnenerbe	Racial science, zoology, occultism	First Nazi scientific mission to Tibet; collected 2,000+ specimens
British Younghusband Expedition	1903–1904	British Empire	Military and diplomatic penetration	Forced entry into Lhasa; established British influence
Swedish Sven Hedin Expedition	1927–1935	Academic consortium	Geography and archaeology	Discovered ancient Silk Road sites
American Harvard Expedition	1938–1939	Harvard University	Medical physiology	Studied altitude sickness in the Andes
French Mission Paul Pelliot	1931–1935	French Academy	Archaeology and linguistics	Recovered Buddhist manuscripts from Dunhuang

Unlike purely academic or imperial missions, the German expedition uniquely blended science with Nazi ideology. While other nations focused on geography or cultural preservation, the SS mission sought to validate racial myths, making it an anomaly in the history of exploration.

Why It Matters

The 1938–39 German expedition remains significant for its intersection of science, politics, and mysticism during one of history’s most ideologically charged eras. Its legacy endures in both scientific collections and as a cautionary tale about the misuse of research for propaganda.

The specimens collected are still housed in German museums and continue to be studied by biologists today.
Film footage from the expedition was used in Nazi propaganda to depict Tibet as a mystical, Aryan-connected land.
The mission highlighted how scientific exploration can be co-opted by totalitarian regimes for ideological ends.
It influenced later Cold War-era interest in psychic research and high-altitude survival by both the U.S. and USSR.
The Ahnenerbe’s work, including this expedition, was later cited in postwar investigations of Nazi occultism.
Modern scholars view the expedition as a key example of pseudoscience embedded within state-sponsored research.

Understanding this mission helps clarify how science and ideology can become dangerously intertwined, especially under authoritarian regimes.