THE discovery of George Leigh Mallory’s body in 1999, at 26,760 ft, on the North Face of Everest, by the Mallory & Irvine Research Expedition, made worldwide headlines.

The find yielded two major clues about Mallory and Irvine’s fate, but not the two vital Kodak cameras.

Mallory had a serious waist haemorrhage, indicating a rope-jerk injury.

This means the two men fell roped together and the rope snagged on an outcrop which halted Mallory.

Mallory was found with few major injuries compared to latter-day climbers who fell from the NE Ridge and were badly broken up.

There are peripheral clues about a possible triumphant assault on the summit. Mallory's daughter said he always carried a photograph of his wife, Ruth, with the intention of leaving it on the summit.

This photo was not on the body when it was found. Given the excellent preservation of the body and its clothing, this suggests he could have reached the summit and left the photo there.

Mallory's snow goggles were in his pocket when the body was found, indicating that he died at night.

This indicates he and Irvine had made a push for the summit and were descending very late in the day.

Given their known departure time and movements, had they not made the summit, it is unlikely that they would have still been out by nightfall.

Intriguing, but we still cannot be certain that they reached the summit.