Augustus Le Plongeon

Augustus Le Plongeon (1825-1908) was an archaeologist who was the first to excavate the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza in Yucatán, Central America. He wrote a lengthy history of Mayan culture, going so far as to propose a theory that Mayans had founded Ancient Egypt, a theory which has since been discredited by the scientific community.

Early life and careers

Le Plongeon was born on the island of Jersey on May 4, 1825. He attended and graduated from Ecole Polytechnique in Paris.

Related Topics:
Jersey - May 4 - 1825 - Ecole Polytechnique - Paris

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After graduation, at the age of 19, he sailed to South America and was caught in a shipwreck off the coast of Chile. While there he settled in Valparaiso and taught mathematics, drawing, and languages at a local college. In 1849, news of the California gold rush reached him, and he sailed to San Francisco to work as a surveyor, and also apprenticed to became a doctor of medicine. One of his accomplishments as a surveyor included drawing a plan for the layout of the town of Marysville, California in the Central Valley in 1851.

Related Topics:
South America - Shipwreck - Chile - Valparaiso - Mathematics - Drawing - 1849 - California gold rush - San Francisco - Surveyor - Marysville, California - Central Valley - 1851

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He then moved to England and studied photography later in 1851. After learning photography, he returned to San Francisco in 1855 to open a daguerreotype portrait studio on Clay Street. In 1862, he traveled to Lima, Peru and opened yet another photography studio and an "electro-hydropathic" medical clinic.

Related Topics:
England - Photography - 1851 - 1855 - Daguerreotype - 1862 - Lima, Peru

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