This monument erected in memory of the polar explorer Salomon August Andrée and his fellow explorers, Knut Fraenkel and Nils Strindberg for their attempt in 1897 to reach the Geographic North Pole by hot hydrogen balloon. The expedition named ‘The Eagle’ set off from Svalbard but unfortunately crashed soon afterwards on the island of Vitön.
However they all survived and continued on foot but after three months of struggling they finely succumbed to the elements.
The fate of the expedition for many years was one of the great mysteries of the Artic, until the remains of the explorers were recovered in the 1930´s.
The monument was created by the sculptor Tore Strindberg who is the brother of Nils Strindberg. On the side of the monument, a carving of the balloon The Eagle is visible and above the balloon, there is an engraved map, which shows the explorers route. At the top of the monument, there is a smaller carving that represents the photo taken by Nils Strindberg when the balloon Eagle crash-landed and they left to continue on foot. There are other carvings on the monument depicting other parts of their journey. The stones found in front of the monument were sourced from the island of Vitön.