He studied the civilizations of the New World in the manner of the pioneers of the time, mixing the empirical observation of anthropological, ethnological and linguistic elements.

He conceived the project of going to Alaska to study the native languages in order to prove the Siberian origin of the Amerindians; at the time, this idea had few supporters.

According to S. Chauvet3, his youth and energy allow him to perform sports such as the solitary kayak trip from Unalaska to Kodiak, which facilitates the search for objects and impresses the locals.

He knew his first financial problems because, besides the expenses of the expedition of 1871-1872, he bought a good part of the library of Brasseur de Bourbourg.

Alphonse Pinart then negotiated with the Ministry of Education the financing of his expedition (granted 2 April 1878) jointly with Leon de Cessac, against the donation of his collection to the Museum of Ethnography Trocadero.