the archives

I had a great opportunity to look at some fascinating objects over at Scott Base on Wednesday! Part of the team over on the Kiwi station is preserving the heroic era of Antarctic history in the huts of early explorers like Scott and Shackleton (circa early 1900's). One of these huts is within walking distance of McMurdo; the Discovery Hut. Another is about 15 miles up the island at Cape Evans, and yet another Ross Island hut is accessed by helicopter.

The Antarctic Heritage Trust is currently working on thousands of items items from the Cape Evans Hut which is where Scott began his ill-fated trip to the South Pole. The first photo of a jar of onions seemed particularly intriguing as the onions are actually preserved in the bottle. Many of the food items simply dried up over time and have preserved themselves. Other items must be handled with care as they can contain botulism and anthrax. Some of the tins are leaking and must be cleaned out. Others have been left intact and will not be opened.

The second photo is of a cheese ball. As the conservators are working with these balls, they have discovered cheese still inside. These tin balls contained another shell of wax covering the cheese. Many of the metal items are at a risk of being destroyed by the salty air and the varying temperatures from the summer to winter. In fact, the huts that the Heritage Trust are working with are in danger of being ruined by the Antarctic environment within 20 years, or so if they are not protected. So, to save some of the heroic Antarctic Era of history, the New Zealand Antarctic Programme is hosting the teams of conservators to work in Christchurch New Zealand, and in Antarctica, to comb through each hut, remove, restore, and return each item to its' place.

Third, I have a photo of one of the stranger items on display. These are pony snow shoes. The early explorers started their treks with horses and put snow shoes on them to aid their stride on the cold continent. The hut at Cape Evans has a stable attached to the hut where the horses could stay. Unfortunately, these species of mammal was not suited for the harsh weather and extreme conditions and became more of a hindrance than a help on journeys to the South Pole.

Lastly, I took a photo of some crayons and a book. I was surprised to see colors laying on the table, but when I look around the station I am on right now, there are crazier things that people have brought to Antarctica. Colors for drawing and painting and recording memories seems quite appropriate for men who were seeing a brand new world in the South.

The process is very amazing and if you're interested, I encourage you to follow the blog of the conservation effort, as well.