#antarctic heritage trust

[saints-who-never-existed]

Sign me up!

(And pay no attention to the fact that I'm triply-ineligible what with not being a Kiwi/Aussie, not specialising in a relevant field of conservation, and not having NZD$2000 laying around to pay as a 'contribution' toward the expedition. Just let me dream though, god damn it!)

[jadagul]

When a fruitcake contains a good deal of alcohol, it can be preserved for many years. For example, a fruitcake baked in 1878 has been kept as an heirloom by a family in Tecumseh, Michigan; as of 2019, the baker's great-great-granddaughter is the custodian of the cake.[13][14] Wrapping the cake in alcohol-soaked linen before storing is one method of lengthening its shelf life.[citation needed] A 106-year-old fruitcake discovered in 2017 by the Antarctic Heritage Trust was described as in "excellent condition" and "almost" edible.[15]

(Wikipedia)

[ierotits]

Unsure if you’ve heard of it but the Antarctic heritage trust takes kiwi youth up to the age of 35 every 1-2 years on trips to Antarctica, figured you’d be keen

yeah I've heard of it and I would KILL to go I need to go so fucking bad like top 2 bucket list things 1. antarctica 2. arctic but im starting my first teaching job in January and can't even think about going 😭😭 still got like 10 years still im 35 tho so im just hoping and praying I can take leave sometime in a couple of years once I've got my registration and go. literally my heart actual breaks every time I see ads about it cos I wanna go sooooooo bad

[mutant-distraction]

1915, Shackleton ordered his expedition ship 'Endurance' be converted to a winter station after realising that they would be stuck in an ice floe in the Weddell Sea until the following spring.

For months 'Endurance' drifted northwards whilst stuck in the ice, however by the following spring, when the breaking of the ice began, extreme pressure was put on the hull. The ship was eventually crushed and sank into the Weddell Sea, but not before the crew abandoned ship, sparking an incredible tale of survival.

107 years later, on 5 March 2022, the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust’s Endurance22 Expedition, successfully located the wreck of the 'Endurance'. The ship itself is still in excellent condition, and will be left where it is, protected as a Historic Site and Monument under the Antarctic Treaty.

📸 Endurance stuck in the ice, Canterbury Museum.

[frostcorpsclub]

Full Name: Virginia Tillytinkle Claus 

Alias(s): Virginia Tillytinkle Hollybubble (Maiden Name), Ginny, Nia, Little Tilly (By elves who knew her mother), Christmas Tree (by her childhood bullies) 

Species: Christmas/Generic Elf Hybrid 

Age: 156

Birth Date: May 10th 1868

Gender: Cis Female

Pronouns: She/Her

Sexual Orientation: Bisexual 

Ethnicity: White (Antarctic Christmas Elf and Australian Elf) 

Place of Birth: The North Pole 

Current Residence: The North Pole

Height: 6'2

Notable Features: She's a foot taller than every other Elf in the North Pole because of her mixed heritage

Personality: 

The theme that has defined most of Virginia’s life is her position as an outsider. After her parents death she was left completely alone, any innocence that she had leftover from their warmth snuffed out faster than she could find her footing in the world around her. Apart from being physically different in a way that intimidated her fellow elf she got the sense that everyone she interacted with could tell she was different on the inside too and hated her for it.

For some time she still held on to hope and would jump at any chance to be included no matter how many times it went horribly south. Even still, it was then as it is now, she would wait to be approached. She’s the type to stand off to the side at a social event hanging out with the host's pet, deeply, awfully, terribly aware of how much she stands out. As she got older she didn’t become any better at social cues but avoided more situations like these by diving deep into the opposite extreme.

Virginia is incredibly paranoid and quick to anger. Physical violence is almost always her first resort whether the elf in question actually did anything to deserve it or not. She finds it hard to trust people in general and is very easy to offend, constantly believing that the other party intends to slight her, as though it wouldn’t make sense for her to be treated otherwise. Which gets in the way of genuine attempts from others to build a relationship with her. On the other hand she offends others as well but not usually on purpose. She sometimes messes up when showing she cares by doing too little or too much because she just doesn't have the experience. However, her attempts are incredibly genuine and heartfelt. 

The aspects of her paranoia not reinforced by her fellow elves is something she developed as a result of her trauma and circumstances. Except, it's made much worse by her drug use. Santa is a cruel boss and the hours are long and arduous. Most elves turn to substances both magical and non to get through it. Virginia is no different but she turned to it because of her intense grief. It made it so she could work non stop. Not only could she surround herself with the things that made her happy without taking a break, meaning she didn't have to think about the hole of her parents absence, but she could funnel the anger into even further physical violence. A give and take she's personally "happy" with. Her career as a sleigh mechanic is one of the few things that brings her genuine joy, which is very uncommon amongst the elves. In spite of no elf really wanting to take it on she not only rose the ranks before she courted Santa, but she's a very good manager to her apprentices. When they get over the initial fear (both the unfounded ones and the founded ones that she might punch them), they admire how passionate she is about her job. The way a new wrench she hasn't gotten before can make her stomp around and kick her feet with splendor is off-putting to her smaller coworkers but a beautiful sight to those who truly know her. She also has a tendency to repeat words in order to self soothe, but also to help her brain remember important information. Oftentimes she'll remember a lot more about a day if she got a new tool or completed a project. 

The usually quiet and erratically reserved woman becomes an open book when she's speaking to someone she trusts. Virginia will share anything and everything about her interests, going on for some time, the boundless energy repressed inside her bursting out with joyous movements. When she does find someone she can not only trust but who makes a genuine effort to understand her, it's nigh impossible to get her to betray them. Even in exchange for a quick thrill. She becomes the type of friend who'll agree with you even when you’re blatantly wrong. Not to mention she’s a great listener, even if it is partially because she’s terrified of losing whatever valuable connection she’s made. Virginia seeks validation when she can get it, because of her naturally overbearing and crass personality, this is usually from misogynistic men. It isn’t something she has the words for or something she’s ever thought about, but the concept of romance intrigues her. She isn’t too picky, unconditional love would be wonderful, but she doesn’t mind having to work for it. Someone who will return the care and fierce protection she provides. It can be tiring being the beast of the colosseum all the time. Virginia can even be gentle! Believe it or not. Settle down, be a wife, and er, ok maybe not the kids. They’re loud and overwhelming. Maternal instincts just aren’t something she has. She tries to be good with kids when the situation calls for it though, good with small vulnerable things. In another life she has more of a reason and a desire to show the compassion she has deep deep deep deep down. This isn’t that life.

Marrying Santa blew the doors wide open for her. It wasn't that she no longer had to work if she didn't want to, she very much wanted to continue her passion. It was the foreboding fact that she no longer had to show restraint. She no longer has to control her anger, worry about consequences, worry about who's deserving, learn to regulate her emotions, well at least not around the other elves. In her eyes they were never going to give her a chance and there isn’t an individual amongst them worthy of the air they steal from her. Even elves who weren't even born when she was growing up. She’s gone off the deep end after turning her back on the elves the same way they turned away from her. She’s hellbent on making every elf pay for what just a few did to her. A self fulfilling prophecy with a hungry smile. 

Likes: Butterflies, mechanic work, vehicles in general especially motorcycles, honestly general repair maintenance, cooking when she can do it on her own time, intense sport, wrestling, boxing, any excuse to beat someone up, illegal substances, thrill seeking, pretty much anything that she wouldn’t be likely to survive if she was a human, physical pressure, fat people. 

Dislikes: Feeling like people are talking about her behind her back, loud noises, being rushed and general unpredictability, children she HAS to take care of, getting too hot or too cold, being forced to talk about her feelings, being treated like she’s stupid, having her morals interrogated.

Family Members: Her Husband Santa Claus, 2 children, 7 grandchildren 

Relationship Status: Married

Friendships/Allies: Jack Frost, Suzette Frost, Evergreen Jubilee 

Enemies: Pretty much every other Elf 

Type of killer: Berserker 

Motivation: An outlet for her emotions and to gain the power over others she didn’t have as a child

Strengths:

Superhuman Strength

Christmas Elf Magic

A small grab bag of weak abilities mostly used for the elves' service of Santa. Virginia lacks some of the regular elf abilities because of her mixed heritage

Light Manipulation: The ability to create small sparkling beams of light that reach a bit farther, wider, and brighter than a flashlight with no limit in color. 

Teleportation: The ability to magically teleport to specific mapped out coordinates, because of her mixed heritage she’s limited to shorter distances and is more like an intense increase in speed than actual teleportation.

Lock Bypassing: The ability to gain access to any locked location on the human plane and a limited number of locations on supernatural planes. 

Weaknesses: Taking longer to heal from injury than a full blooded christmas elf, her height makes fall injuries have greater impact, dependency to substances, a lack of construct creation that allows other elves to create toys or extra supplies for their jobs. 

[fashionbooksmilano]

South Pole 1910-1913

The British Antarctic Expedition

Christine Dell’Amore

Assouline, New York 2012, 136 pages, Hardcover with Jacket, 100 illustrations,  19.38 x  27.69 cm, ISBN  9781614280101

euro 50,00

email if you want to buy :booksinprogressmilano@yahoo.it

Although it’s a piece of history learned by every British student, the Terra Nova Expedition of 1910-1913 remains an epic story unknown to many. In this ultimate display of life and boundless bravery, Robert F. Scott and his five-man team battled the elements— traveling through subzero temperatures with motor sledges and ponies—in the hope of being the first to reach this uninhabited territory. Assouline is pleased to announce South Pole, providing a rare opportunity to feel an intimate connection to a heroic age of exploration.Arriving at the South Pole on January 17, 1912, the adventurers were greeted by their worst nightmare: a Norwegian flag. Disheartened and badly frostbitten, they trudged back toward their boat only to die just eleven miles from the next depot. Featuring a collection of stunning black and white photography alongside entries from Scott’s harrowing diary, this tome starkly presents this well documented tragically untold journey. The book's proceeds are graciously donated to the Antarctic Heritage Trust who preserve expeditions and the thousands of associated artifacts survive for the benefit of future generations; and inspire people through the values associated with adventure, discovery and leadership.Beyond the incredible feats of endurance, hardship, and the extraordinary scientific achievements from Scott’s last attempt, the world was captivated by Captain Scott’s prowess as a diarist and the outstanding photographic skill of team member Herbert Ponting. The written and photographic legacy enabled people to connect with this journey frozen in time as they have never before.

22/12/22

orders to:     booksinprogressmilano@yahoo.it

ordini a:        booksinprogressmilano@yahoo.it

twitter:         @fashionbooksmi

instagram:   fashionbooksmilano, designbooksmilano tumblr:          fashionbooksmilano, designbooksmilano

[dailyreportonline]

3D Scans Reveal Endurance Shipwreck Details After 107 Years | Daily Reports Online

The wreck of the Endurance, the ship lost during Sir Ernest Shackleton’s 1914 Antarctic expedition, has been captured in incredible detail using 3D scans and underwater photography. The ship had been submerged in the icy waters of the Weddell Sea for over a century until its rediscovery in 2022. The images, taken by the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust, reveal parts of the 144-foot vessel that…

[automaticvr]

Explore Scott’s Discovery Hut through Virtual Reality - Antarctic Heritage Trust

[primeministerofantarctica]

YOU CAN SEND OTHER PEOPLE OR YOURSELF POSTCARDS FROM ANTARCTICA RIGHT NOW. they're £20 and all proceeds go to the antarctic heritage trust. it's a limited-time thing so the last date for orders is october 5!

[grad603kaede]

Week 7 - Sir Edmund Hillary Research

Sir Edmund Hillary is a mountain climber (The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica) born and raised in New Zealand. He was the first man to climb Mount Everest along with Tenzing Norgay in May 1953 (Hillary Institute of International Leadership).

Personality

Integrity

Modesty

Determination

Service to others

Growing up, he worked in the family beekeeping business. He later joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force in 1994 and started mountaineering 16 of the tallest peaks in New Zealand (Ministry for Culture and Heritage). He toured Europe in 1950, climbing the Alps and a year later joined the member of the first all-NZ expedition to the Himalayas.

In the 1953 expedition, Hillary and Tenzing Norgay formed a team, reaching the summit on May 29 and gaining worldwide attention. He led the Antarctic expedition in 1956 and 1957, establishing Scott Base on Ross Island.

Hillary was determined to help the underprivileged sherpas in the Khumbu region of Nepal who had put great effort into his expeditions. He established the Himalayan Trust, building bridges, schools, hospitals, airfields and hospitals in Nepal and restored Buddhist sanctuaries.

In 1958, he became New Zealand's ambassador to India and became a member of the Order of NZ in 1987 and a knight of the Garter in 1995 (Ministry for Culture and Heritage).

He has made his living from public speaking, writing and undertaking further expeditions, inspiring international interest in mountaineering.

Reference:

Hillary Institute of International Leadership. “About Sir Edmund.” Hillary Institute, www.hillaryinstitute.com/about-sir-edmund#:~:text=Sir%20Edmund%20Hillary%20personifies%20essential.

Ministry for Culture and Heritage. “Edmund Hillary | NZHistory, New Zealand History Online.” Nzhistory.govt.nz, nzhistory.govt.nz/people/edmund-hillary.

The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. “Sir Edmund Hillary | New Zealand Explorer.” Encyclopædia Britannica, 3 Oct. 2018, www.britannica.com/biography/Edmund-Hillary.

[saints-who-never-existed]

"The Trust's on-Ice Conservation team explain the challenges of working on the five historic huts the Trust cares for in Antarctica."

"The Ross Sea Heritage Restoration Project conserves the explorer bases belonging to legendary explorers Carsten Borchgrevink at Cape Adare, Captain Robert Falcon Scott's two bases - 'Discovery' hut at Hut Point, and 'Terra Nova' hut at Cape Evans, Sir Ernest Shackleton's 'Nimrod' hut at Cape Royds, and Sir Edmund Hillary's TAE/IGY hut at Pram Point."

[worstjourney]

Your friendly periodic reminder that, if you live in the US, you don't need to order Worst Journey from the UK, you can get it direct from Silver Sprocket!

And, while I'm at it, Kiwis can get it from the Antarctic Heritage Trust, and in so doing, support conservation of the historic sites and promulgation of Antarctic historical knowledge.

And Germans can get it extra large and IN GERMAN from any bookshop, but here's a link to Dussmann as an example.

If you live in none of these places, you can choose from any of the options on the constantly-updated "Where To Get It" page of worstjourney.com

[thxnews]

UK Announces Multi-Million Investment to Boost Nature Recovery

  - UK government also opens applications for Darwin Plus Main, Fellowship, and Local, continuing to support nature recovery and species under threat - Funding delivers on the government’s target to halt and reverse biodiversity decline   Efforts to boost biodiversity recovery in the UK Overseas Territories have been bolstered with large-scale projects funded for the first time to tackle nature loss. The UK Overseas Territories, including the Falkland Islands and Montserrat, are some of the most nature-rich and biodiverse areas in the world. Thick forests, shimmering oceans, and vast grasslands thrive with wildlife, many of which are under threat from climate change and habitat loss. The new Darwin Plus Strategic Fund will support projects up to £3 million over the next three years to strengthen species and habitat recovery in the Overseas Territories. The funding will be awarded to projects in the UK Overseas Territories that are designed to tackle invasive species, improve internationally important habitats such as cloud forests and coral reefs, and expand monitoring of climate change to improve resilience.   Environment Minister Trudy Harrison said: “From dense rainforests to marshlands which capture carbon, our Overseas Territories are full of unique habitats and diverse wildlife which must be protected for future generations. “The new grant scheme announced today is a flagship commitment which will support transformative improvements in biodiversity, halt nature loss and build climate resilience.” Howard Nelson, Chair of Darwin Plus Advisory Group, said: “Every annual call for projects for Darwin Plus is important, as it provides a way to fund important efforts to conserve the unique biodiversity of the territories. “The addition of the Darwin Plus Strategic Fund enables the stakeholders from the Overseas Territories with an opportunity to scale up and accelerate actions that work for conservation, and bring positive change for biodiversity across these amazing places. We are very excited to see the proposals and the new opportunities this will create for conservation action.”   Under the Environmental Improvement Plan, the government reiterated the commitment to bolster support for biodiversity in the Overseas Territories. Today’s announcement delivers on this pledge and will help achieve the target to halt biodiversity decline by 2030 and improve species abundance by 10% by 2042. In addition to the opening of the new Darwin Plus Strategic Fund, existing funding allocated through Darwin Plus Local will support over 40 projects including: - Support for Bermuda’s Living Reef Foundation which preserves and restores coral reefs by rearing young corals in its land-based hatchery and planting them on the reef habitat. The funding will support increased monitoring, the use of 3D computer modeling infrastructure and train four scientists to enhance coastal protections - Biodiversity surveys in Antarctica to better understand and implement new biodiversity protection measures around the Western Antarctic Peninsula and increase protection for flora and fauna sites. The grant will support the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust to create a new Environmental Management Plan to address climate adaptation - The protection and hand-pollination of endemic ghost orchids in the Cayman Islands to address the threat of extinction. The funding will support partners who raise seedlings in nutrient-rich media to combat pollination limitations observed in natural populations   Since 2012, the Darwin Plus program has invested over £45 million in over 240 biodiversity and conservation projects in the UKOTs.

Further information

£10 million has been made available each year until 2025 for the Darwin Plus Program. The existing funding schemes include: - Darwin Plus: the original funding offer which enters its twelfth consecutive year and continues to support conservation projects cost between £100,000 and £1 million - Darwin Plus Fellowships Fund: which continues to support nationals of the UK Overseas Territories better understand the causes and impacts of biodiversity loss and enhance protections for the natural environment - Darwin Plus Local Fund: aimed at small-scale environmental projects, this fund will build capacity in-territory and contribute to local economies. Launched in January 2023, this scheme remains open to individuals and organisations, for projects up to a maximum of £50,000 - Darwin Plus Main Fund supports projects across the 14 UK Overseas Territories (UKOTs), which are: Anguilla; Bermuda; British Antarctic Territory; British Indian Ocean Territory; The British Virgin Islands; The Cayman Islands; The Falkland Islands; Gibraltar; Montserrat; The Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie & Oeno Islands; Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha; South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; Sovereign Base Areas, Akrotiri and Dhekelia (Cyprus); and, The Turks & Caicos Islands. - Primary responsibility for biodiversity conservation and wider environmental management in the UK Overseas Territories has been devolved to the OT governments, who, with the support of the UK government, are responsible for developing appropriate, applicable, and affordable environmental policies, legislation, and standards - For further information on Darwin Plus programs, visit: https://darwinplus.org.uk/   Sources: THX News, Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs & Trudy Harrison MP. Read the full article

[write-something-every-day]

LONDON (AP) — Scientists say they have found the sunken wreck of polar explorer Ernest Shackleton’s ship Endurance, more than a century after it was lost to the Antarctic ice.

The Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust says the vessel lies 3,000 meters (10,000 feet) below the surface of the Weddell Sea, about 6.4 kilometers (four miles) south of the location recorded in 1915 by its captain, Frank Worsley.

An expedition set off from South Africa last month to search for the ship, which was crushed by ice and sank in November 1915.

Mensun Bound, director of exploration for the Endurance22 expedition, said footage revealed the ship to be in remarkably good condition.

“This is by far the finest wooden shipwreck I have ever seen,” he said. “It is upright, well proud (clear) of the seabed, intact, and in a brilliant state of preservation. You can even see ‘Endurance’ arced across the stern, directly below the taffrail.”

Shackleton’s 1914-16 attempt to become the first person to cross Antarctica via the South Pole failed — he never set foot on the continent. But his successful bid to reach help at a remote South Atlantic whaling station and rescue his men is considered a heroic feat of endurance. All the men survived and were rescued many months later.

The expedition to find the ship comes 100 years after Shackleton’s death in 1922.

British historian and broadcaster Dan Snow, who accompanied the expedition, tweeted that Endurance was found on Saturday, “100 years to the day since Shackleton was buried.”

He said the wreck had been filmed, but wouldn’t be touched.

“Nothing was touched on the wreck,” he said. “Nothing retrieved. It was surveyed using the latest tools and its position confirmed. It is protected by the Antarctic Treaty. Nor did we wish to tamper with it.”

[tealin]

Scene 2: Int. Cape Evans, The Tenements

As usual, the version with all the pictures can be found at the original blog. I am not even going to try fixing the image tags here because that has never worked, but I think the images show up after a few hours, so um ... check back maybe? Or refresh? You're better off going to the source, though. Sorry.

As we walk deeper into the hut from the mens’ quarters, coming through the gap in the bulkhead, the view looks like this:

Today we’re going to look at the section to our left, or mapping the hut in nautical terms, starboard amidships. This is the area of the hut that was known as ‘The Tenements’ for how crowded and relatively sloppily built the bunks were. One very famous photo of The Tenements has all its residents in their places and shows this area at its most lived-in – it was October 1911, everyone had spent a winter in their little domains, and were about to set off on the journey for the Pole.

This is The Tenements as they appeared in November 2019:

The first thing that struck me about seeing the Tenements in person was how small they were. Scale in Ponting’s photograph is thrown off partly by the framing, but mostly by everyone lying down aside from the shortest of the Tenements’ tenants, Birdie Bowers. To my surprise, I could easily see over the top bunks, and I am only 5’6”.

We’re going to start at the forward end, with Cherry and Birdie’s bunks. Cherry is the main character in my graphic adaptation of his book, and I’ll be drawing a lot from his point of view, so getting a really solid idea of his bunk area was a must.

Although the Tenements photo has everyone with their heads at the public end of their bunks, they probably slept the other way around, for such privacy and quiet as one could find with 25 men in a 50’x25’ room. While the Cape Evans hut feels like it’s full of stuff now, comparing the modern hut with the Tenements photo above, you’ll see just how much more stuff there was back in 1911!

Cherry was a great fan of Kipling, and brought his whole collection with him – these likely lived on the small shelf you can see against the hut wall. The bed is now covered with stray bits of clothing, and one of the socks has Cherry’s name sewn into it, so I assume the others have been identified as his too.

The ladder leads up to Bowers’ bunk, so let’s take a look at that …

This is the foot end, which he also used as a desk, as you can see in the Ponting photo. The boards blocking it off from the main hut weren’t there in October 1911, so they may have been added the second winter, but Scott’s men weren’t the only ones to have used this hut – a couple of years after they left, Shackleton’s Ross Sea Party moved in, and one of them may have moved into Bowers’ bunk and sought some extra privacy.

But the real treasure of Bowers’ bunk is at the other end …

It’s his hat! The actual Green Hat of legend – less green than I was expecting, but definitely the same one as in all his photos. I was so pleased that, of all things, it should still be here – that he didn’t take it on the Southern Journey, that the Ross Sea Party had let it be, and that it hadn’t been pilfered in the years of uncontrolled hut visits before the AHT took charge.

The photo below the hat, I suspect, originally belonged to Cherry. He had found a photo of the actress Marie Lohr in a magazine and wanted it for a pinup, but one of Ponting’s photographs was on the other side of the page. and Ponting thought that was the object of his affection. He offered to mount it nicely for Cherry, which would have meant gluing the lovely Miss Lohr to the mounting board, and with some flustered embarrassment Cherry’s intentions came out. I had some photos of Marie Lohr; none of them are the photo in the hut, but she looks to me like the same person. How it got from Cherry’s bunk to Birdie’s I don’t know – the AHT have been very careful about giving items to the correct people, so it must have been found there. Perhaps the member of the Ross Sea Party who took Birdie’s bunk liked the photo and moved it up there.

My trip here was, in large part, to get photos that were necessary to my storytelling but unlikely to be found anywhere else. The Cape Evans hut is extremely well documented, but there are angles which are important to the reality of living there which do not necessarily make glamourous shots for publication. One of these was the view from the Tenements to the rest of the hut, rather than into the Tenements. It happens also to give you a good sense of how crammed they were.

Immediately to our left here is Titus Oates’ bunk. He was in charge of the horses, so it’s piled high with horse stuff.

The fringe in the middle is, in effect, pony sunglasses – it was originally dyed brown and would have hung down over their eyes like hair, blocking out a large portion of the harsh sunlight and snow glare. Ponies can get snowblindness too!

Behind us, from where we are standing looking at Titus’ bunk here, is Meares’ bunk, and below that, Atkinson’s. Atkinson, who alone shared the Tenements with Cherry through the miserable second winter, was in command of the expedition at that point; as doctor as well, he had a very heavy job in keeping the bereaved and stir-crazy men on the right side of health, both physical and mental. As leader, he could have moved into Scott’s much more comfortable and private space – that he didn’t, and that the thought of such a thing didn’t even turn up in anyone’s journals, says a lot about him and all of them. He stuck it out in his Spartan cubbyhole, within view of his best friend’s now deserted place, and was there for everyone.

It was here that I spotted the thing that, of all the amazing things in the hut, nearly brought a tear to my eye.

If you look at the Ponting photo at the start of this post, you will see that the string once held a spoon! I don’t know if it belonged to Meares or Atch – in the photo the string doesn’t look long enough to reach either of them. I think of it as ‘Atch’s spoon’ but that may be just because it’s hanging by his face; Meares seemed more the type to be possessive about silverware. Wilson’s cartoon in the South Polar Times suggests there was once an entire cutlery set hanging here, but that may have been a comedic exaggeration.

People visiting the hut often say it feels like the people are still there, or that they could walk in the door at any moment. I wanted to feel that, but I have to confess my experience was quite the opposite: they were gone, very gone, and had been for a very long time. Finding the string there without the spoon summed that up that better than anything.

Our next stop is the stern of the hut – Scott’s cubicle, Ponting’s darkroom, and the lab. Before we go, let’s take one look back at the Tenements.

[type40capsule]

An "almost perfectly preserved" 118-year-old painting has been discovered among penguin excrement, dust and mould-covered papers in Antarctica.

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

Antarctic Heritage Trust conservator Josefin Bergmark-Jimenez made the find among about 1500 artefacts the trust is conserving from the continent's huts at Cape Adare, which were built in 1899.