When Ernest Shackleton found himself and 26 othersstuck in the Antarctic ice more than 80 years ago, he would have had little idea that he was about to begin one of the most extraordinary journeys of heroism and survival the world would ever know. Shackleton and his intrepid crewfoiled by crushing ice from crossing Antarctica via dogsleddragged their lifeboats 200 miles across the ice, sailed more than 800 miles through horrendous conditions, and eventually landed at South Georgia Island for rescue.
The leader who never lost a man is being remembered and celebrated by the American Museum of Natural History in New York (see page 16 for a new book on Shackleton) with an interactive exhibit beginning April 10. Visitors will have the chance to use sextant simulators and, through computer programs, compare their navigational exercises to that of Endurance’s crew. One of the original lifeboats, James Caird, is on display along with 150 of Frank Hurley’s stark photos of the expedition.
The exhibit, entitled The Endurance: Shackleton’s Legendary Antarctic Expedition, is the most comprehensive collection of artifacts and photographs of the 1914-16 expedition to date. Also included are Hurley’s rarely seen film footage, some early color images, and diaries kept by several crewmembers.
