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Archive for category: Famous Discoveries

Shackleton’s Whisky

January 31, 2010 - Famous Discoveries, News Story, Shackleton's Hut

In January 2010 our conservators found five crates encased in ice under Shackleton’s 1908 Antarctic base – three contained Mackinlay’s whisky and two contained brandy.

The three whisky crates were excavated and one crate was flown to New Zealand to be carefully thawed by the Trust in a purpose-built environment and public gallery at Canterbury Museum. Eleven bottles of the 114-year old whisky were revealed, still sheathed in their paper and straw packaging.

After delicate conservation, the then owner of Whyte & Mackay (which owns the Mackinlay brand), flew to New Zealand to see the extraordinary find. Under permit from the New Zealand Government, he transported three bottles to Scotland on his private jet for scientific analysis by Whyte & Mackay and The Scotch Whisky Research Institute.

In a unique opportunity for the whisky world, the bottles were subjected to sensory and chemical analysis to establish the flavour and composition of a product manufactured a century earlier. In April 2011, Whyte & Mackay’s master blender, Richard Paterson, successfully recreated an exact replica of the century-old whisky and Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt Whisky was born.

Artefact Programme Manager Lizzie Meek working on the straw bottle covers at Canterbury MuseumAntarctic Heritage Trust

Artefact Programme Manager Lizzie Meek working on the straw bottle covers at Canterbury Museum


Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt Whisky Antarctic Heritage Trust

Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt Whisky

The whisky proved so popular that in late 2012, a second edition, ‘The Journey’, was released. Both editions have resulted in a substantial donation to the Trust’s conservation work in Antarctica.

The National Geographic Channel’s Expedition Whisky documentary and author Neville Peat’s excellent book, Shackleton’s Whisky, have both recorded the whisky’s journey from obscurity to world-wide attention. Meanwhile, whisky lovers the world over are enjoying the replica whisky. They are in good company. The whisky has been gifted to, and by, heads of state and royalty.

In January 2013, the Shackleton whisky story came full circle with New Zealand Prime Minister the Rt Hon. John Key repatriating the three bottles of original whisky to the Trust’s staff in Antarctica. The final stage in a remarkable journey for the world’s best aged and travelled whisky was the return of the original crates to Ernest Shackleton’s 1908 base at Cape Royds.

Shackleton’s Nimrod hut sits on an ice-free area of rock at Cape Royds, next to Pony Lake.Antarctic Heritage Trust

Shackleton’s Nimrod hut sits on an ice-free area of rock at Cape Royds, next to Pony Lake.

https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/whisky-crate56a171d19008b9.64806087-1500x.jpg 1125 1500 Comms https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/logo-dark.png Comms2010-01-31 01:41:082019-05-29 01:03:59Shackleton’s Whisky

Century-old Fruitcake

August 10, 2017 - Borchgrevink's Hut, Famous Discoveries, Media Releases, News Story

Antarctic Heritage Trust conservators found a 100 year old fruit cake among the artefacts from Cape Adare.

Made by Huntley & Palmers, the fruit cake is still wrapped in paper and encased in the remains of a tin-plated iron alloy tin. The cake probably dates to the Cape Adare-based Northern Party of Scott’s Terra Nova expedition (1910 – 1913) as it has been documented that Scott took this particular brand of cake with him at that time. Although the tin was in poor condition, the cake itself looked and smelt (almost) edible.

Fruit cake after conservation treatment.Antarctic Heritage Trust

Fruit cake after conservation treatment.

Conservation treatment involved rust removal, chemical stabilisation and coating of the tin remnants. Deacidification of the tin label and some physical repair to the torn paper wrapper and tin label was also carried out. The cake itself was in excellent condition. Programme Manager-Artefacts Lizzie Meek said “With just two weeks to go on the conservation of the Cape Adare artefacts, finding such a perfectly preserved fruitcake in amongst the last handful of unidentified and severely corroded tins was quite a surprise. It’s an ideal high-energy food for Antarctic conditions, and is still a favourite item on modern trips to the Ice.”

Huntley and Palmer's fruit cake in wrapper.Antarctic Heritage Trust

Huntley and Palmer’s fruit cake in wrapper.

Fruit cake found at Cape Adare thought to be from Scott's Northern Party (1911).Antarctic Heritage Trust

Fruit cake found at Cape Adare thought to be from Scott’s Northern Party (1911).

Since May 2016, a team of four conservators have been working in the Canterbury Museum lab on the conservation of Antarctic artefacts from Cape Adare. The team recently finished the large project in July this year, conserving almost 1500 artefacts. The Trust is now planning to begin the conservation work on the buildings at Cape Adare. The huts were built by Norwegian Carsten Borchgrevink’s expedition in 1899 and later used by Captain Scott’s party in 1911. The buildings were the first in Antarctica and are the only examples left of humanity’s first building on any continent. The permit the Trust was granted to collect the artefacts stipulates that all of the items must be returned to the site following conservation, in accordance with the site’s status as an Antarctic Specially Protected Area (ASPA). This will happen once the huts themselves have been restored. The Trust is very grateful for the support it receives from its funders, Norwegian Government, Canterbury Museum for its facilities and logistical support from Antarctica New Zealand to get the artefacts out of and back to Cape Adare. Check out the Huntley and Palmers online archive.

https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/fruit-cake598a4de2408c68.28255362-1500x.jpg 1000 1500 Comms https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/logo-dark.png Comms2017-08-10 23:01:242021-09-13 15:30:45Century-old Fruitcake

Dr Edward Wilson Watercolour

June 12, 2017 - Borchgrevink's Hut, Famous Discoveries, Media Releases, News Story

 

New Zealand Antarctic Heritage Trust has discovered an almost perfectly preserved 118 year old watercolour painting among penguin-excrement, dust and mould covered papers found in an historic hut at Cape Adare, Antarctica.

 

Canterbury Museum

The water colour was painted by Dr Edward Wilson who died with Captain Robert Falcon Scott and three others on their return from the South Pole in 1912.

 

Dr Edward WilsonCanterbury Museum

Dr Edward Wilson

“I opened it and there was this gorgeous painting… I got such a fright that I jumped and shut the portfolio again. I then took the painting out and couldn’t stop looking at it – the colours, the vibrancy, it is such a beautiful piece of work. I couldn’t believe it was there.” The painting is labelled ‘1899 Tree Creeper’ and has the initial ‘T’ on it. It depicts a Tree Creeper bird specimen. The discovery was made in September 2016, but has been kept confidential until now to enable the team to focus on restoring all of the 1,500 artefacts from Cape Adare.

 

Antarctic Heritage Trust

 

Antarctic Heritage Trust

The Trust’s Programme Manager – Artefact Conservation, Lizzie Meek says it wasn’t immediately clear who the artist was given that two expeditions had based themselves at Cape Adare. “The Cape Adare huts were built by Norwegian Carsten Borchgrevink’s expedition in 1899 and later used by Captain Scott’s party in 1911. We knew the artist was likely to be among the men on those expeditions,” says Lizzie.

 

Borchgrevink’s hut at Cape Adare is built amongst a colony of over 400,000 breeding pairs of Adelie penguins.Antarctic Heritage Trust

Borchgrevink’s hut at Cape Adare is built amongst a colony of over 400,000 breeding pairs of Adelie penguins.

As the Trust was working to identify the artist, Josefin attended a lecture at Canterbury University on Dr Wilson. “The presenter showed some of Dr Wilson’s artwork… as soon as I saw his distinctive handwriting, I knew he had painted the Tree Creeper. This made sense as there was also a 1911 newspaper article from the Lyttelton Times in the papers and Scott’s party went to Antarctica via New Zealand.”

 

Antarctic Heritage Trust

Lizzie Meek says Dr Wilson was a remarkable man. “He was not only a talented painter, but a scientist and a medical doctor who was an integral member of both of Scott’s expeditions to the Ice.” Josefin is not surprised the painting survived in such excellent condition. “Water colour paintings are particularly susceptible to light so the fact this work has spent more than a hundred years tightly packed between other sheets of paper in completely dark and cold conditions is actually an ideal way to store it.” Lizzie Meek says how the painting came to be in the hut is still something of a mystery. “It’s likely that Wilson painted it while he was recovering from tuberculosis in Europe. Clearly, he could have taken the painting to Antarctica on either of Scott’s expeditions but we think it’s more likely the artwork travelled with him in 1911, and somehow made its way from Cape Evans to Cape Adare.”

 

Antarctic Heritage Trust

The permit the Trust was granted to collect the artefacts stipulates that all of the items must be returned to the site following conservation, in accordance with the site’s status as an Antarctic Specially Protected Area (ASPA). This will happen once the huts themselves have been restored. The Trust’s General Manager Operations and Communications, Francesca Eathorne says finding the painting is a poignant reminder of the inspiring legacy the early polar explorers left behind. “More than a century later we are still sharing stories about those expeditions. We’ve been able to create a high quality facsimile of the painting so we are now looking forward to sharing it with the rest of the world. We are in no doubt this will attract global interest – particularly from our friends in the UK.” Visit Cheltenham’s art gallery and museum The Wilson: www.cheltenhammuseum.org.uk

https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/the-water-colour-pai593efc0c14ec73.21611806-785x.jpg 593 785 Comms https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/logo-dark.png Comms2017-06-12 23:43:152019-06-11 23:30:42Dr Edward Wilson Watercolour

Ross Sea Party Photos

January 15, 2016 - Famous Discoveries, Scott's Hut, Cape Evans

Our conservation specialists, working in expedition photographer Herbert Ponting’s darkroom at Scott’s Cape Evans base, discovered a small box of cellulose nitrate negatives clumped together.

The photographs are from Ernest Shackleton’s Ross Sea Party (1914-1917), which spent time living in Scott’s hut after being stranded on Ross Island when their ship blew out to sea. Their role was to lay vital depots for Shackleton’s expedition.

The negatives were removed from Antarctica to undergo detailed conservation treatment back in New Zealand, where the negatives were painstakingly separated to reveal 22 never-before-seen Antarctic images.Antarctic Heritage Trust

The negatives were removed from Antarctica to undergo detailed conservation treatment back in New Zealand, where the negatives were painstakingly separated to reveal 22 never-before-seen Antarctic images.

Iceberg and land, Ross Island. Antarctic Heritage Trust

Iceberg and land, Ross Island.

Although many of the images were damaged, our conservators were able to recognise landmarks around McMurdo Sound. While the identity of the photographer remains unknown, it is thought to be expedition photographer, the Reverend Arnold Spencer-Smith.

Alexander Stevens, chief scientist and geologist on-board the Aurora.Antarctic Heritage Trust

Alexander Stevens, chief scientist and geologist on-board the Aurora.

Looking south along Hut Point Peninsula to Ross Island.Antarctic Heritage Trust

Looking south along Hut Point Peninsula to Ross Island.

 

Ross Island, Antarctica. Alexander Stevens, chief scientist and geologist looks south. Hut Point Peninsula in the backgroundAntarctic Heritage Trust

Ross Island, Antarctica. Alexander Stevens, chief scientist and geologist looks south. Hut Point Peninsula in the background

Tent Island, McMurdo Sound.Antarctic Heritage Trust

Tent Island, McMurdo Sound.

Big Razorback Island, McMurdo Sound.Antarctic Heritage Trust

Big Razorback Island, McMurdo Sound.

Mount Erebus, Ross Island, from the west.Mount Erebus, Ross Island, from the west.

Mount Erebus, Ross Island, from the west.

 

Sea ice afloat, McMurdo Sound.Antarctic Heritage Trust

Sea ice afloat, McMurdo Sound.

https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ross-sea-party-exami569ec437cde598.99236413-1500x.jpg 1125 1500 Comms https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/logo-dark.png Comms2016-01-15 22:05:352019-06-11 23:37:58Ross Sea Party Photos

Levick’s Notebook

October 23, 2014 - Famous Discoveries, Scott's Hut, Cape Evans

Our conservators discovered a photographer’s notebook left behind a century ago at Captain Scott’s last expedition base, Cape Evans.

Read more
https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/levick-notebook-spla569ee6bb31e8d4.69894033-1500x.jpg 997 1500 Comms https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/logo-dark.png Comms2014-10-23 21:43:422019-06-20 10:47:35Levick’s Notebook

Shackleton’s 111-year-old Beer Barrel

January 11, 2019 - Famous Discoveries, Media Releases, News Story, Shackleton's Hut

Antarctic Heritage Trust has returned a carefully reconstructed beer barrel to the Antarctic hut that was home to Sir Ernest Shackleton’s historic ‘Nimrod’ expedition in 1908.

Shackleton’s hut at Cape Royds is also where the Trust found three crates of Mackinlay’s whisky encased in ice; a discovery that attracted global attention.

Credit: Kinsey, Joseph James (Sir), 1852-1936. Photographs relating to Antarctica and mountaineering. Ref: PA1-o-464-17. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand.

Shackleton’s hut at Cape Royds, Ross Island, Antarctica 1907-1909

The barrel of beer was originally donated to Shackleton by New Zealand brewer Speight’s in 1907.  Its iron hoops and staves were pulled out of Pony Lake, alongside the Cape Royds hut, by caretakers in the 1970s.

Credit: Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge, with permission

A sledge party from the Nimrod Expeditition team unload beer from the ship to the hut

The Trust’s Programme Manager-Artefacts Lizzie Meek says the barrel pieces were left near the hut and remained there, embedded in ice, for decades.When the Trust started major conservation work at the site in 2005, the staves and hoops were leaned up against an area adjacent to the latrine and the pony stables.“The Trust spent four years conserving the hut, finishing in 2008. During that project, we saw some of the staves half buried in the ice and put a plan in place to excavate and conserve them.

Shackleton's hut at Cape Royds, Ross Island, Antarctica.Antarctic Heritage Trust

Shackleton’s hut at Cape Royds, Ross Island, Antarctica.

“It took some time but we managed to get them back to New Zealand in 2016. One of the staves has a bunghole and is engraved with the words ‘Speight’s’ and ‘Dunedin’ so we knew it was a beer barrel from the brewery.”

The barrel bunghole on one of the recovered staves is engraved with the words ‘Speight’s’ and ‘Dunedin’.Antarctic Heritage Trust

The barrel bunghole on one of the recovered staves is engraved with the words ‘Speight’s’ and ‘Dunedin’.

Once in New Zealand, the barrel underwent a detailed examination by the Trust’s conservators in a laboratory at Canterbury Museum. “The iron hoops were too badly corroded to be used to reconstruct the barrel but many of the staves were in suitable condition,” says Lizzie Meek. AHT then connected with one of New Zealand’s only practising coopers, Jurgen Voigtlander, and worked with him to re-build the Speight’s barrel. The Trust was grateful to Speight’s Dunedin for supplying some staves for the reconstruction of the barrel.

Great Scott PR

One of New Zealand’s only practising coopers, Jurgen Voigtlander, re-built the Speight’s barrel

“Jurgen established a repair strategy after a lot of research and trial assembly. It wasn’t an easy job given that, over the years, the original staves had lost some of their curvature and were heavily eroded. But Jurgen painstakingly rebuilt the barrel, using traditional techniques, the original staves, new iron and some new wooden elements. We were delighted with the result.”AHT paid for the conservation of the barrel and it was taken back to site with logistics support from Antarctica New Zealand.

The Speight's barrel was carefully positioned outside Shackleton's hut by the Trust's conservation team.Antarctic Heritage Trust

The Speight’s barrel was carefully positioned outside Shackleton’s hut by the Trust’s conservation team.

The Cape Royds hut sits in an Antarctic Specially Protected Area (ASPA) which means permits are required to remove anything from the area and anything temporarily removed has to be returned.

Returning the barrel to Antarctica

Transporting the barrel back to its home at Cape Royds held a few challenges. Logistics between Christchurch and Antarctica are operated by the United States and New Zealand Antarctic Programmes. The first stage of the journey was packing it for transit from Christchurch to Phoenix runway in McMurdo Sound on board an American C-17. A large Antarctic storm cycle caused a 2-week delay to the start of the summer on-ice season, preventing aircraft from landing and causing the Trust some anxiety, as staff and cargo were waiting in Christchurch. However, the system caught up and both barrel and staff arrived in Antarctica in time for the next stage of the journey. Once at Scott Base, the barrel was gradually exposed to lower temperatures, eventually being stored (wrapped) outside at ambient temperatures of around -15 degrees C. The distance between Scott Base and Cape Royds is a little under 40km, and the terrain is a mix of the lower slopes of the active volcano Mt Erebus, and frozen sea ice. The barrel was transported to a ridgeline near Shackleton’s historic hut using a container slung underneath a Southern Lakes helicopter. From the top of the ridge, the AHT team transferred the barrel to a polypropylene sled and towed it down the hill to its final resting place outside Shackleton’s Nimrod hut.

Mike Gillies

Shackleton’s Nimrod Hut, Cape Royds

This area and adjacent areas were used by Shackleton’s expedition to stage/store all sorts of equipment, food cases and barrels. There was a constant ebb and flow of different items. The barrel is too large to fit comfortably inside the hut, and like the stores boxes also found outside the hut, forms part of the story of the enormous quantity of supplies needed for an over-wintering party of 15 men, as well as dogs, ponies and a motor car.

The Speight's barrel is now in position outside Shackleton's Hut.Antarctic Heritage Trust

The Speight’s barrel is now in position outside Shackleton’s Hut.

Trust Executive Director Nigel Watson says it was a poignant moment to see the barrel be returned there.“Just as when we returned Shackleton’s whisky to the ice, there was some celebration at the barrel’s return. Conserving Antarctic artefacts is an incredibly meticulous process so it’s always satisfying to see them put back with a new lease on life that will see them survive for generations to come,” concludes Nigel.

What happened to the beer?

Beer will freeze if left outside on all but the warmest of Antarctic summer days, and in fact the beer may even have been consumed during a special occasion on the ship (SS Nimrod) and the barrel re-purposed for another use. We have not yet found a record that detailed, but some records indicate that the tragic accident where Captain Aeneas Mackintosh lost an eye, was caused when a hook carrying up a barrel of beer from the Nimrod’s hold, sprang loose and hit him in the head.

Shackleton's hut at Cape Royds, Ross Island, Antarctica.Antarctic Heritage Trust

Shackleton’s hut at Cape Royds, Ross Island, Antarctica.

The barrel location provides shelter from the two prevailing winds at the site (north and south winds), which lowers the damage caused by wind and ice erosion, and protects the barrel from being moved by the stronger gusts during storms.Part of the work the Trust carries out on an annual basis is snow removal, monitoring and maintenance of all aspects of the building and artefact collection. Over the next few years we will be checking the barrel on each visit, and will keep an eye on its condition.

The interior of Shackleton's Hut.Antarctic Heritage Trust

The interior of Shackleton’s Hut.

https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/shackletons-hut-at-c5c366cb31a61e4.69025838-600x600.jpg 600 600 Comms https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/logo-dark.png Comms2019-01-11 00:08:092020-04-06 22:18:27Shackleton’s 111-year-old Beer Barrel

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#OnThisDay in 1904, Captain Robert Falcon Scott's #OnThisDay in 1904, Captain Robert Falcon Scott's first Antarctic expedition ship 'Discovery' arrived back in Lyttelton Harbour, Christchurch, New Zealand.

Scott's National Antarctic 'Discovery' Expedition 1901-04 was sponsored by the Royal Geographical Society, the British Government and a London businessman, Llewellyn Longstaff. There were also donations from officers of the Royal Society and other private individuals. Sir Clements Markham launched the appeal that eventually raised £90,000 for the expedition – sufficient to pay for a new ship, provisions, wages and other costs.

It was the second expedition to winter over on the Antarctic continent, following Carston Borchgrevink's 'Southern Cross' Expedition 1899-1900. The men carried out significant exploration of the continent, including a ‘furthest south’ record of 82º16’S, and comprehensive scientific observations in the fields of meteorology, geology, glaciology, botany, marine biology and cartography.

At the end of the expedition, Scott and his men worked to saw a channel in the ice, freeing 'Discovery' from her berth of two years. On 5 January 1904, the relief ships 'Morning' and 'Terra Nova' were sighted. Efforts were then made to free 'Discovery' with explosives, but this did not achieve the desired effect and Scott made plans to abandon the ship. Then, on 14 February, the sea-ice began to break up and with the aid of a final explosive charge and some assistance from the wind and currents, 'Discovery' was free. After stopping briefly in Robertson Bay at Cape Adare to replace the rudder, the 'Discovery' proceeded to Lyttelton.

You can read more about the history of Scott's first Antarctic expedition here: https://nzaht.org/conserve/explorer-bases/scotts-hut-hut-point/history-of-expedition/

📸 Discovery Hut, the expedition base located at Hut Point, with the ship 'Discovery' in the background. Canterbury Museum.

#OTD #inspire #explore #discover #conserve #Antarctica #Scott #RobertFalconScott #discovery
#OnThisDay in 1900, Borchgrevink's British Antarct #OnThisDay in 1900, Borchgrevink's British Antarctic 'Southern Cross' Expedition party returned to New Zealand from Antarctica after two years.

Borchgrevink’s party of 10 men was funded by magazine magnate Sir George Newnes. The aim of the expedition was to collect scientific data and study wildlife, be the first team to intentionally overwinter on the continent and explore the continent’s interior. Borchgrevink also wanted to investigate the commercial possibilities of the region, focusing on whaling, mineral prospecting and the mining of penguin guano for fertiliser.

Many of the expedition’s scientific records were lost but they did achieve some exceptional ‘firsts’, for example, they were the first to erect a building in Antarctica at Cape Adare. This hut still exists today as the only example left of humanity's first building on any continent. Antarctic Heritage Trust is proud to care Borchgrevink's legacy at Cape Adare on behalf of the international community.

They were also the first team to winter over, and use dogs, sledges and skis to travel over land and sea ice. Expedition members Bernacchi and Colbeck also produced a detailed map of the area that was used by later expeditions. Finally, under Bernacchi’s leadership, the first full year of weather readings was recorded. Their data set the baseline for Antarctic climate science.

📸 The Southern Cross expedition members pictured just before spending the first winter on the Antarctic continent, 1899. Canterbury Museum

#inspire #explore #discover #conserve #Antarctica #borchgrevink #capeadare
#OnThisDay in 1912, Captain Robert Falcon Scott ma #OnThisDay in 1912, Captain Robert Falcon Scott made his final diary entry as he, Edward Wilson and Henry Bowers, waited for the inevitable end, trapped in their tent with unseasonably cold temperatures and worsening health preventing them from making the 11-mile journey to their next food and fuel depot.

Scott's diary: "Since the 21st we have had a continuous gale from W.S.W. and S.W. We had fuel to make two cups of tea apiece and bare food for two days on the 20th. Every day we have been ready to start for our depot 11 miles away, but outside the door of the tent it remains a scene of whirling drift. I do not think we can hope for any better things now. We shall stick it out to the end, but we are getting weaker, of course, and the end cannot be far.

It seems a pity, but I do not think I can write more.

R. SCOTT.

For God’s sake look after our people."

Scott's Polar Party reached the South Pole on 17 January 1912, 34 days after Amundsen and his Norwegian party. During the journey home Edgar Evans suffered a fatal concussion and passed away 17 February. Thereafter, in March, Scott’s diary records the heroic end of Captain Lawrence 'Titus' Oates who, stricken with frostbite, walked out from the camp to his death.

For Scott and his remaining men, a successful march home depended on the decisions made and the depots laid months prior to the expedition. However, the storm that raged and a lack of food and fuel prevented this, and the men died in their sleeping bags within their tent. The journal of Tryggve Gran, part of the 11-man search party, records that the bodies were found on 12 November 1912. He used his own skis to construct a cross above the cairn that he and the rest of the search party erected over the site and wrote of Scott's skis, "I am using the Owner's ski(s) - they must finish the journey - and they will."

📸 Snow Cairn erected over the final resting place of Scott, Wilson and Bowers, Antarctica New Zealand Pictorial Collection.

#OTD #inspire #explore #discover #conserve #Antarctica #RobertFalconScott #terranova #southpole
Antarctic Heritage Trust is honoured to be one of Antarctic Heritage Trust is honoured to be one of the ten charities that Matt Rose has chosen to support as part of Matt's Good Walk. Matt is walking the length of the South Island and has raised almost half of his ambitious $250,000 target, some of which will help fund one young person on the Inspiring Explorers Expedition™ - South Georgia 2023.

Check out the news story below to read more about how Matt is achieving this.
https://www.scene.co.nz/queenstown-news/local-life/matts-big-fundraising-strides/

To learn more:
https://www.mattsgoodwalk.nz/
https://inspiringexplorers.co.nz/

#mattsgoodwalk #inspiringexplorers2023 #inspire #explore #antarcticheritagetrust
#OnThisDay in 1870, Herbert George Ponting was bor #OnThisDay in 1870, Herbert George Ponting was born. Ponting was a professional photographer and is best known as the expedition photographer and cinematographer for Captain Robert Falcon Scott’s 'Terra Nova' expedition 1910-1913. During his time on the ice, Ponting captured some of the most enduring images of the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.

Scott’s vision of taking Antarctica to the world was to be fulfilled beyond his wildest expectations. Through his skill, tenacity and adaptation to the Antarctic conditions, Ponting opened everyone’s eyes, providing lessons to members of the expedition so the standard of photographic work on their scientific field parties was second to none. Ponting returned from the 'Terra Nova' expedition after the first year with a catalogue of over 1700 negatives and ca. 25,000 feet worth of film. His work moved beyond the bounds of travelogues or scenic imagery, it became the very forefront of polar wildlife documentary film-making.

Ponting had his very own darkroom in the 'Terra Nova' hut at Cape Evans on Ross Island. To find out more about Ponting and this fascinating space, check out the Trust's podcast Frozen in Time (#3 on the interactive map) on our website https://nzaht.org/frozen-in-time/

📸 Photographer Herbert George Ponting (1870-1935) at work in the dark room of Scott's 'Terra Nova' hut, Antarctica, during the British Antarctic Expedition, 24 March 1911. Alexander Turnbull Library

#inspire #explore #discover #conserve #Antarctica #RobertFalconScott #Scott #Ponting #capeevans
#OnThisDay in 1889, Lionel Greenstreet, First Offi #OnThisDay in 1889, Lionel Greenstreet, First Officer of Shackleton's Imperial Trans Antarctic 'Endurance' Expedition (1914-17) was born. He grew up in East Barnet, Hertfordshire and at around 15 years old, became a cadet on the training ship 'Worcester' where he passed certificates in Navigation and Seamanship.

In August 1914, while on leave from duties with the New Zealand Shipping Company in Scotland, Greenstreet wrote to Frank Worsley, Captain of the 'Endurance' for a position on the expedition. As the First World War was starting, the original chief officer Douglas George Jeffrey, had left for active service. One day before Endurance sailed from Plymouth, Greenstreet received a short message from Worsley directing him to come meet him from whereby he was told to get his affairs in order and be ready to leave the next morning.

Greenstreet played an important role in the expedition team's survival after 'Endurance' was abandoned and crushed by ice in the Weddell Sea. Worsley later gave extensive praise to Greenstreet for his efforts on the journey to Elephant Island, relieving Worsley at the tiller of 'Dudley Docker' and serving as a key rower for the boat. After the expedition, Greenstreet served in both world wars, held numerous positions, married and eventually retired in Brixham, Devon. Greenstreet was the final surviving member of the 'Endurance' expedition, he died in 1979.

📸 Public Domain, Photographed by David Knights-Whittome

#inspire #explore #discover #conserve #Antarctica #Endurance #Shackleton
#OnThisDay in 1912, the remaining three members of #OnThisDay in 1912, the remaining three members of Scott's Polar Party, British Antarctic 'Terra Nova' Expedition 1910-1913, made their final camp on their return from the South Pole. Captain Robert Falcon Scott, Lieutenant Henry Bowers and Dr Edward Wilson were just 11 miles from the next depot of food and fuel which would have saved them.

Scott's diary entry on Monday 19 March, describes a dreadfully heavy sledge and -40-degree temperatures. Trapped by a blizzard, the men shared the little food they had left and waited.

"Every day we have been ready to start for our depot 11 miles away, but outside the door of the tent it remains a scene of whirling drift..." - R. F. Scott, Thursday 29 March. Scott's Last Expedition © The Long Riders' Guild Press.

📸 Scott's Party on Reaching the South Pole 1912 © Antarctica New Zealand Pictorial Collection.

#OTD #inspire #explore #discover #Antarctica
#OnThisDay in 1912, Captain Lawrence Oates made th #OnThisDay in 1912, Captain Lawrence Oates made the ultimate sacrifice, stepping out of his tent into a blizzard never to be seen again. Oates was an integral part of Scott's Polar Party, during the British Antarctic 'Terra Nova' Expedition 1910-1913, and made a brave attempt to preserve enough supplies for Scott, Wilson and Bowers during their return from the South Pole.

Oates was severely frostbitten, weakened and suffering from scurvy. Believing he was slowing the other men down, Oates died so they could have a chance at living. As he left the tent, Oates's famous last words are recorded as "I'm just going outside and may be some time..."

Captain Scott recorded these words in his diary, and some uncertainty lies over whether it was on the 16th or 17th March, which is also the same day that Oates was born 32 years earlier in 1880. Scott also wrote of Oates in his diary, "...it was the act of a brave man and an English gentleman."

Lawrence Oates was born in Putney, Surrey and in 1898, Oates joined a militia regiment, the 3rd Battalion of the West Yorkshire Regiment. In 1900, he was given an attachment to the British Army's 6th Inniskilling Dragoons and fought during the Second Boer War in South Africa. During the war Oates suffered a bullet injury to his thigh, leaving him with a limp and one leg shorter than the other. This injury caused him further pain, when the chill of the Antarctic intensified the effect of his injuries.

Oates' body was never found, however near where it is presumed that he died the search party erected a cairn and cross with the inscription;

'Hereabouts died a very gallant gentleman, Captain L. E. G. Oates, of the Inniskilling Dragoons. In March 1912, returning from the Pole, he walked willingly to his death in a blizzard, to try and save his comrades, beset by hardships.'

📸 Lawrence Oates, Alexander Turnbull Library

#OTD #inspire #explore #discover #conserve #Antarctica
LAST CHANCE TO APPLY – applications close at mid LAST CHANCE TO APPLY – applications close at midnight NZDT Sunday 19 March 2023.

Are you ready to follow in Shackleton’s footsteps? Challenge yourself? Grow as a person? Connect with fellow explorers? Be inspired by epic tales of polar exploration? Are you willing to share your experience and inspire your community to embrace the spirit of exploration?

Reach into the unknown – apply now for the upcoming Inspiring Explorers Expedition™ South Georgia! Head to inspiringexplorers.co.nz.

Applications close at midnight NZDT Sunday 19 March 2023. Eligibility criteria apply.

���This incredible two-week ship-based expedition is presented by @antarctica_21 and supported by our Inspiring Explorers™ Programme Partners @metservicenz and @royalsocietynz. 

📸 Sir Ernest Shackleton, Public Domain

#inspire #explore #discover #conserve #SouthGeorgia #inspiringexplorers #polar #adventure #Shackleton
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