Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ship Endurance, which was crushed by ice and sunk in 1915, has just been found. How is this photography related? Somewhere on board the ship is a treasure trove of Frank Hurley photographs documenting one of the last expeditions of the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.
Hurley’s discs and films have been lying in the frigid Weddell sea more than 3,000 meters for more than 100 years.
Mensun Bound, marine archaeologist and director of the Endurance expedition was quoted as saying:
No exaggeration, this is the best wooden shipwreck I’ve seen – by far.
It is upright, proudly on the seabed, intact and in a brilliant state of preservation.
Is it possible that Hurley’s images could be salvaged?
Those who know the story will remember that Hurley and Shackleton smashed many of Hurley’s plates before the ship sank.
As Endurance began to slowly sink, Hurley realized he hadn’t saved all of his exposed disks. Hurley himself repeatedly dashed into the wreck to get to his hangar, below the ice surface. If anyone has taken a Polar Bear Dip, can you imagine doing it over and over again, with no sauna waiting for you? Honestly, I’m sure he’s got a few scotch drams to keep him warm.
When it became clear that the expedition would have to continue from the sinking ship, Shackleton and Hurley sat together on the ice to choose which photographs and films to take and what to leave behind. Heartbreakingly, the two smashed the plates they decided to leave behind so there wouldn’t be a second thought. In the end, they only saved 120 pictures, with the location of more than 30 still a mystery. Are those lost discs and perhaps some movies still on board?
We know that some of the films were taken from an Antarctic expedition hut in 2013 and developed. The movie turned out to be from Scott’s Expedition, made by Arnold Patrick Spencer-Smith in 1915. If that movie still exists, could some images of Hurley be pulled from the depths?
The wreck is protected as a Historic Site and Memorial under the Antarctic Treaty, ensuring that during this time the wreck will only be surveyed and filmed. I’m assuming this means no one will go inside. For now, we will have to be patient. Look forward to the promise of more pictures of Hurley:
Lead and Stamina image 22 courtesy of the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust, was taken by Endurance Contemporary Images during an expedition photographed by Frank Hurley and is located in the Public Domain.
