Robert F. Scott’s Centenary
Published on 08.08.2010 - General Info
The three masts Terra Nova build as a whaler turned to be a polar exploration vessel for Robert F. Scott
© None
This summer, there is worldwide celebration of the centenary of the departure from the Welsh port of Cardiff -on 15 June 1910- of the `Terra Nova Expedition' led by the famous English explorer, Robert Falcon Scott, who went to the Antarctic with the objective of being the first person to get to the South Pole.
That was and will forever remain one of the greatest pages of the history of the exploration of the Antarctic continent; the duel between the explorers Amundsen and Scott for the conquest of the South Pole just a few weeks apart and almost unknowingly (at least where Scott was concerned). Does anyone still need to be reminded that it was the Norwegian who got to the pole first, on 14 December 1911, and that on 17 January 1912, that is to say less than a month later, Scott and his four companions discovered with horror the tent that Amundsen and his team had erected at the SP before him?
It is that epic whose centenary is being celebrated all over the world this summer. Here are some of its most outstanding manifestations:
From Coal to Pole, Wales & Antarctica (United Kingdom)
On 15 June 1910, a large, excited and noisy Cardiff crowd cheered a heavily laden ship as she left Bute Dock. SS Terra Nova was headed south - to Antarctica. The logistical and financial support received by Captain Scott and his expedition from the people of Wales, led him to designate Cardiff as the home port of the Expedition. Amongst those who would eventually stand with him at the Pole was a local Welshman from the Gower and Swansea, P.O. Edgar Evans RN.
This exhibition was first shown in Cardiff as part of the Scott 100 events celebrating the centenary of the expedition's departure from Cardiff but now comes to the National Waterfront Museum in Swansea, proud home of Petty Officer Edgar Evans RN. It is a celebration of the contribution of Wales to the exploration of the Antarctic continent.
WHERE ? At Swansea National Waterfront Museum, Oystermouth Road, Maritime Quarter, United Kingdom
Race to the End of the Earth (USA)
The exhibition focuses on the challenges that the two competing explorers-Norwegian, Roald Amundsen, and British Royal Navy Captain, Robert Falcon Scott, had to face as they undertook their 1,800-mile journeys the Ross Ice Shelf to the Pole and back.
WHERE ? At the American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th street, New York, NY 10024
The Race to the Pole (United Kingdom)
To celebrate the centenary of Captain Scott's last expedition aboard the Dundee built Whaler, Terra Nova, and the famous race to the Pole that ensued with the Norwegian, Roald Amundsen, Captain Scott's first famous ship, Discovery, is to host a centenary exhibition at her home in Dundee.
The exhibition wil showcase stunning objects and photographs to mark this special Captain Scott, centenary, at the home of Captain Scott's ship.
WHERE ? At the Dundee Heritage Trust, Discovery Point, Discovery Quay, Dundee-Scotland, United Kingdom
The Heart of the Great Alone (New Zealand)
An exhibition of photographs presented to King George V and taken in the Antarctic by Herbert George Ponting and Frank Hurley. The exhibition is being held to mark the 100th anniversary of Captain Scott’s ill-fated journey to the South Pole.
In addition to the photographs are some remarkable ephemera from the Royal Collections, including Captain Scott's South Pole flag.
The exhibition opened at The Queen's Gallery, Palace of Holyroodhouse, in Edinburgh, in October 2009 and will be showing at the Canterbury Museum, Christchurch, New Zealand, from 19 August 2010 to 20 February 2011. It will return to the Queen's Gallery in London for exhibition in 2012
Additional material from the extensive Polar collections of the Canterbury Museum will also be on display whilst the exhibition is in New Zealand, along with a small display of memorabilia that celebrates the special links between the Royal Family and Canterbury.
WHERE ? At the Canterbury Museum, Christchurch, New Zealand, Rolleston
