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Archive for category: Shackleton’s Hut

Summer Conservation Season Complete

May 1, 2023 - Ross Sea Heritage Restoration Project News, Antarctic Blog, Conserve, News Story, Scott's Hut, Cape Evans, Shackleton's Hut

The Trust’s On-Ice Conservation team spent seven weeks in Antarctica undertaking a comprehensive monitoring and maintenance programme on the historic Ross Island explorer bases of Captain Robert Falcon Scott, Sir Ernest Shackleton, and Sir Edmund Hillary.

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“Thrilling and ground-breaking” – Antarctic Heritage Trust reacts to Endurance discovery

March 10, 2022 - Conserve, Media Releases, News Story, Shackleton's Hut
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https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Endurance-Website-featured-image-scaled.jpg 985 2560 Anna Clare https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/logo-dark.png Anna Clare2022-03-10 10:13:442022-03-10 11:54:31“Thrilling and ground-breaking” – Antarctic Heritage Trust reacts to Endurance discovery

Conserving Shackleton’s Venesta Cases

May 29, 2022 - Ross Sea Heritage Restoration Project News, Antarctic Blog, Conserve, News Story, Shackleton's Hut

The largest and most challenging task this 2021/22 season was at Shackleton’s Nimrod hut at Cape Royds.

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https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Nimrod-Hut-Al-Fastier.jpg 729 1234 Comms https://nzaht.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/logo-dark.png Comms2022-05-29 22:15:152022-06-07 12:12:29Conserving Shackleton’s Venesta Cases

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.

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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.

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#OnThisDay in 1872, Royal Navy Lieutenant and Chie #OnThisDay in 1872, Royal Navy Lieutenant and Chief Engineer and photographer for Scott's British National 'Discovery' Expedition, Reginald Skelton was born.

Skelton was born in Lincolnshire, and educated at Bromsgrove School, Worcestershire before joining the Royal Navy in 1887. During his time on the 'HMS Majestic' from 1899 to 1900, Skelton had risen to the position of senior engineer and served with Robert Falcon Scott. This meeting led to Skeleton's appointment to supervise the building of Scott's expedition ship 'Discovery' as ship's engineer. Once in Antarctica and particularly in the winter, Skelton assumed other duties for the good of the expedition. He became "photographer-in-chief" to the expedition and produced some of the best pictures of Antarctica obtained up to that date!

Following his time in the Antarctic, Skelton returned and served in World War 1 and rose through the service becoming Engineer Rear-Admiral in 1923, Engineer Vice-Admiral in 1928 and Engineer-in-Chief of the Fleet, Admiralty. In 1931 he was knighted and retired the following year. He died in 1956, aged 84, at his home in Aldingbourne.

#inspire #explore #discover #conserve #Antarctica #OTD

📸 Officers of the `Discovery' on the 1901-1904 British Antarctic Expedition. Reginald Skelton six from left. Alexander Turnbull Library.
#OnThisDay in 1921, the decision to go South as pa #OnThisDay in 1921, the decision to go South as part of the Shackleton-Rowett 'Quest' Expedition 1921-22 is confirmed!

Shackleton met with several men who joined him on the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition 1914-17, both 'Endurance' and 'Aurora' party members; Frank Worsley, Frank Wild, Leonard Hussey, Lewis Rickinson and Joseph Stenhouse, as well as his partner John Quiller Rowett, Lee Keedick, Northrup McMillan, Percy Wallace and Laurence Legge. The men dined at the Savoy Restaurant in London, and all signed the menu, complete with drawings of penguins.

📸 Signed menu at Savoy Resturant. Copyright unknown. Sourced from @QuestChronicle

#inspire #explore #discover #conserve #Antarctica #OTD
#OnThisDay in 1956 British Antarctic explorer, nav #OnThisDay in 1956 British Antarctic explorer, naval surgeon and founder of the Public Schools Exploring Society (now British Exploring Society), George Murray Levick, died.

Levick was born in Newcastle in 1876. He studied medicine at St Bartholomew's Hospital and in 1902 was commissioned in the Royal Navy. Several years later Levick was granted leave of absence to accompany Robert Falcon Scott on the British Antarctic 'Terra Nova' Expedition 1910-13 as surgeon and zoologist.

During this expedition, Levick was one of the six members of the Northern Party who built a hut and wintered at Cape Adare in 1911. The 'Terra Nova' then took the Northern Party south to complete geological work and surveys and they were dropped at Evans Cove 8 January 1912. They were supposed to be picked up a month later however because of the ice conditions the ship couldn't get to them and they spent the winter in a snow cave at Inexpressible Island, Terra Nova Bay. In the spring of 1912, the men travelled some 200 miles on meagre rations, finally reaching the safety of the hut at Cape Evans on 7 November 1912.

Earlier this year, Antarctic Heritage Trust repatriated several items to Scott's 'Terra Nova' hut at Cape Evans, including an improvised sledge distance meter which was used during their surveying work, and kept by George Levick. 

To read more about the story behind this, go to our website under Share, Latest news, Conservation: Link in bio

📸 George Murray Levick, self portrait. SPRI.

#inspire #explore #discover #conserve #Antarctica
#On this Day in 1879, polar explorer Edward Stewar #On this Day in 1879, polar explorer Edward Stewart Marshall was born in Hampstead, London. He read medicine at Emmanuel College, Cambridge and continued his studies at St Bartholomew's Hospital in London, qualifying as a surgeon in 1906.

Marshall was the surgeon on Shackleton's British Antarctic 'Nimrod' Expedition 1907-1909 and also the cartographer with the shore party. He was a member of the Southern Party, which led by Shackelton, achieved the Farthest South record of latitude 88° 23' South, longitude 162° East in January 1909, in their attempt to reach the South Pole. During this journey, Marshall was instrumental in saving the lives of the party by struggling to a food depot when the rest of the party was exhausted.

After his expedition to Antarctica, Marshall went on to research nutritional deficiency diseases and had a successful military career.

He was awarded the Polar Medal and a Military Cross and is commemorated in Antarctica by the naming of the Marshall Mountains 84°37' S 164°30' E.

📸 Wild, Shackleton, Marshall and Adams upon their return from the Southern Journey (Canterbury Museum).

#explore #discover #antarctica #OTD #shackleton #endurance
The Trust welcomes several new members to our Boar The Trust welcomes several new members to our Board in 2023. Brent Clothier joins as the Royal Society Te Apārangi representative, Rex Hendry as the New Zealand Antarctic Society representative, and Aliesha Staples is appointed as a new Independent Trustee.

We are delighted that Governance Interns Mike Dawson and Georgina Archibald have joined the Board as full Independent Trustees, and we welcome two new Governance Interns, Laura Andrews and Tasman Gillies.

To find out more about our new Board members go to our website, Link in Bio under SHARE, LATEST NEWS

📸 Clockwise from top left: Aliesha Staples, Dr Brent Clothier, Mike Dawson, Tasman Gillies, Laura Andrews, Georgina Archibald, Rex Hendry © AHT

#discover #inspire #explore #conserve #antarctica
📣REMINDER: GIVEAWAY ALERT!📣 To win a copy o 📣REMINDER: GIVEAWAY ALERT!📣

To win a copy of Volume 1 of the graphic novel adaptation of 'The Worst Journey in the World' by Apsley Cherry-Garrard, worth $NZD45.00, adapted by Disney animator Sarah Airriess, simply comment that you would like to enter by midnight Sunday 28 May. The winner will be chosen at random and announced on Monday 29 May. If you receive a reply asking you to click a link – this is not genuine. These messages are not posted by Antarctic Heritage Trust.

We are celebrating the Trust becoming the New Zealand distributor for this fantastic book. Originally published in 1922, Cherry-Garrard’s classic of travel literature chronicles the epic tragedy of Captain Scott's British Antarctic Expedition of 1910-1913. Now, a century later, Sarah Airriess has adapted this classic into a graphic novel series, spanning four books, spending over a decade researching the expedition to tell the story completely and faithfully. The book is not just about the exploration, but also about the personalities of the men involved and the science they undertook.

Purchase the graphic novel from the Antarctic Heritage Trust website: Link in bio

#inspire #discover #explore #conserve #antarctica #TravelLiterature #TerraNovaExpedition #GraphicNovel #TheWorstJourneyInTheWorld #Giveaway #Competition

@twirlynoodle @WorstJourneyGN @indienovella
Over the summer season, our On-Ice Conservation te Over the summer season, our On-Ice Conservation team repatriated several artefacts to Scott’s Terra Nova hut at Cape Evans, including an improvised sledge distance meter wheel once owned by George Murray Levick. Levick was the surgeon, zoologist and a photographer on Scott’s British Antarctic Expedition 1910 – 1913. He was part of the Northern Party who built a hut and wintered at Cape Adare in 1911.

To learn more about the history of this fascinating artefact, go to our website Link in bio; SHARE, LATEST NEWS, CONSERVATION

📸 A sledge distance meter wheel placed with other sledging equipment in Scott's 'Terra Nova' hut © AHT-Lizzie Meek

#discover #explore #inspire #antarctica #terranova #nimrod
📣GIVEAWAY ALERT!📣 To win a copy of Volume 1 📣GIVEAWAY ALERT!📣

To win a copy of Volume 1 of the graphic novel adaptation of 'The Worst Journey in the World' by Apsley Cherry-Garrard, worth $NZD45.00, adapted by Disney animator Sarah Airriess, simply comment that you would like to enter by midnight Sunday 28 May. The winner will be chosen at random and announced on Monday 29 May. 

We are celebrating the Trust becoming the New Zealand distributor for this fantastic book. Originally published in 1922, Cherry-Garrard’s classic of travel literature chronicles the epic tragedy of Captain Scott's British Antarctic Expedition of 1910-1913. Now, a century later, Sarah Airriess has adapted this classic into a graphic novel series, spanning four books, spending over a decade researching the expedition to tell the story completely and faithfully. The book is not just about the exploration, but also about the personalities of the men involved and the science they undertook.
 
You can purchase the graphic novel from Antarctic Heritage Trust by visiting our website; link in bio.

#inspire #discover #explore #conserve #antarctica #TravelLiterature #TerraNovaExpedition #GraphicNovel #TheWorstJourneyInTheWorld #Giveaway #Competition

Indie Novella
After 36-hours of gruelling travel, Shackleton, Wo After 36-hours of gruelling travel, Shackleton, Worsley and Crean successfully arrived at Stromness Whaling Station, South Georgia #OnThisDay in 1916. The men traversed what had been regarded 'inaccessible' country by whalers.

As the men prepared breakfast on their final morning, Shackleton thought he heard the sound of a whistle from the whaling station. The three ate in silence, listening for the sound. At exactly 7 am the whistle sounded again. It was the first sound of humanity they had heard in over a year! The route towards Stromness became dramatically steep and they had to cut steps into the ice once again. Upon reaching the shore of Fortuna Bay with great difficulty, they proceeded on to what they thought was level ground, only for Crean to break straight through ice into a frozen lake up to his waist. They lay flat to distribute their weight and made their way off the fragile surface. As they approached the whaling station, in typical gentlemanly fashion, the trio attempted to make themselves presentable, in Shackleton’s words ‘for the thought there might be women at the station made us painfully conscious of our uncivilised appearance.’

"Our beards were long and our hair was matted. We were unwashed, and the garments which we had worn for nearly a year without a change were tattered and stained." - Sir Ernest Shackleton

They came across two youngsters, the first humans they had seen in nearly eighteen months, who ran away at the sight of them. The station manager, Mr Sorlle, who had entertained them when the 'Endurance’ crew had first arrived at Stromness, did not recognise them as they appeared on his doorstep. After recounting the details of their ordeal to the manager they were finally able to bathe, an experience that Worsley described as ‘worth all that we had been through to get’. Sorlle immediately arranged rescue for the men stranded at King Haakon Bay, on the other side of South Georgia.

📸 Crean, Shackleton and Worsley a few days after crossing the interior of South Georgia (Robert Burton Collection)

#explore #discover #antarctica #OTD #shackleton #endurance
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