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Tales from the Antartic

A vast continent, something the size of Australia and Europe combined, the most inhospitable place on Earth, the last great wilderness. The land of the blizzard, a frozen desert. Yet this bleak place has fascinated man since its discovery. The potential wealth of raw materials this region has to offer for the benefit of mankind is almost unimaginable.

It takes a special kind of person to work in and endure the severe conditions of such an environment. Dr Rainer Goldsmith of Gaulby has been on three expeditions to the Antarctic during his career. He first went out on the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic expedition 1956/57, for which he was awarded the rather rare Polar Medal. The expedition was led by Sir Vivian Fuchs. As a Doctor his role was in research, working alongside scientific and geographical teams, observing how people responded to the extreme conditions and isolation.

Over the years Dr Goldsmith has collected many items and memorabilia that now form a small private museum. It tells a tale of man's first serious exploits to explore and examine the interior of this huge continent.

One of the first exhibits are some heavy duty rifle bullets. These are remnants from Borchgrevinks expedition in 1899. These early explorers were the first to winter on the continent. Taking such ammunition with them showed that they obviously feared that they might encounter some large and dangerous wildlife. It must have been with some relief to find that there was nothing more fierce out there than Penguins and Seals.

There are the remains of a wind-torn Union Jack which stood at the base for the Trans-Antarctic expedition. A photograph next to it shows this in position with a tractor crate to its left. In the background is the skeletal structure of a hut that the eight man team had tried to erect. The weather conditions became so extreme however, that the party found it impossible to finish the building. Instead they chose to use the tractor crate, some 20 x 9 x 8 feet as their living quarters for a year!

Other exhibits include old food tins of pemmican, milk, cocoa, fish and so forth. On an expedition in 1960 Mr Goldsmith's team wanted to celebrate Christmas in a special way. They were at the previous base of the 1907 Shackleton's expedition and dined heartily on food that was 53 years old!

One small tin has an earlier explorer's inscription on it

The Aurora was the name of that particular expedition's ship. The tin had been taken to the foot of the Beardmore Glacier, where food was left for a crossing party that failed to arrive, as their ship had sunk in the ice.

Another exhibit is a wooden nail from Amundsen's ship 'The Fram'. Such nails were used so as not to interfere with the magnetic field as they approached the Pole.

Other sea-faring items include, carved whale bones and walrus tusk, known as Scrimshaw work. There are also the mouth parts of a Baleen whale once famous for putting whalebone 'stays' in Victorian ladies corsets. There is also the tooth from a Sperm Whale. In this day and age it is hard to imagine what the whaling and sealing industry must have been like at its height.

Old biscuits and Kendal mint cake are on display, a must for every intrepid voyager! There are also some suppositories with a note from 'Hints to travellers' that those with haemorrhoids should not travel.

There are photographs of Scott's and Shackleton's huts which are still standing today and are now museums. From 1930, there is also a souvenir postcard of Byrd's aeroplane and snow-cruiser the latter of which he planned to drive to the Pole. His snow-cruiser however, bogged down as soon as it was unloaded, never to move again.

Another exhibit shows photographs of some American 'Belles' from a Miss America competition in 1956. These pictures were radioed in by a HAM and the girl who won was eventually flown out to visit the team - one of the first women in Antarctica!

There is a book from Scott's 1910 expedition; its leaves are blackened with soot, and indeed it still smells of the warming fires that helped to keep that party going 85 years ago.

The ice layers of the Antarctic, which in places can be a mile thick, are like the rings on a tree. If a core sample is taken from the ice and analysed it can reveal many secrets of the Earth's history. For example, it is possible to trace back to the year the first atomic tests took place. The year that the volcano Krakatoa erupted and when the industrial revolution began in Europe. So accurate is some of this dating that jokes were bandied about; if you wanted ice in your drink, you could ask for say, 1066 ice, and think of William the Conqueror and so onto any point in history locked in the ice. Apparently as this ice melts in one's drink it releases trapped gases, thus creating an effervescent, so there is no need for carbonated additions.

The Antarctic still has so much to teach us with its vast resources and its fragile ecology. Recently it has been brought to our attention that a large ice-berg the size of Oxfordshire has broken away from the ice-shelf. The proportions are staggering, over 1,100 square miles and its breaking off gives rise to some consternation.

It also highlights, however, the immensity of the place, its powers and strengths, yet its fragility. It also seems extraordinary that a huge inhospitable fastness like this is so vulnerable to the actions of man.

One of the last items on show in the museum is a contemporary copy of the "Daily Mirror" with a picture of Scott's tent, where he and the last of his party died. It is a sad but stark reminder of that cruel environment. Let's hope man is not so cruel in his exploitation of this astounding region.

© Mark Whitcher 1995

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stephen.poyzer@which.net or jemeny@globalnet.co.uk

 © Kibworth & District Chronicle 1998