On top of the world Lines in the Ice Seeking the Northwest Passage Philip Hatfield and Tom Harper, Curators British Library, London. 14 November 2014 to 29 March 2015. www.bl.uk/events/lines-in-the-ice-seeking-the-northwest-passage
| Autor: | Julia Fahrenkamp-Uppenbrink |
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| Rok vydání: | 2015 |
| Předmět: | |
| Zdroj: | Science. 347:37-37 |
| ISSN: | 1095-9203 0036-8075 |
| DOI: | 10.1126/science.aaa3167 |
| Popis: | [Figure][1] ![Figure][1] Designed for the harsh and unpredictable weather of the Arctic, this early inflatable dinghy doubled as a cloak and came with a sail that could also be used as an umbrella. PHOTO CREDIT: PETER HALKETT The story of Arctic exploration is frequently portrayed as one of hardship and endurance, survival against all odds, and often tragic loss of life. This exhibition uses an exceptional set of maps, books, and artworks from the British Library's collection to provide a more nuanced view. The exhibition begins by showing that well before the famous expeditions of the 19th and early 20th centuries, the search was on for riches in the Arctic and an easier route to China. In 1744, the British government offered £20,000 for the discovery of a Northwest Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. However, maps aiming to portray the passage as navigable were based more on fantasy than fact, and the longheld notion that open ocean water could not freeze proved hard to reconcile with reality. The most intriguing items in this part of the exhibition are a set of two wooden objects that look at first glance like abstract works of art but turn out to be threedimensional maps of a coastline and a chain of islands. Given to explorers as mementos, the maps were created by the Inuit to be felt rather than seen. Rarely preserved, they are a fascinating reminder that maps can come in many forms, some of them ephemeral. The central part of the exhibition focuses on the more familiar 19th-century expeditions. Following the Napoleonic Wars, the Royal Navy, with men and ships to spare, embarked on a concerted effort of Arctic exploration. The region also captured the popular imagination at this time and featured prominently in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel, Frankenstein. Exhibits here show the daily life of men overwintering. Far from the image of bravery and excitement, they can be seen playing cricket in the endless snow. Human ingenuity was tested by the harsh and barren landscape and led to a number of marvelous inventions, including an inflatable dinghy that doubled as a cloak and umbrella. Other inventions included canned food, although, unfortunately for the explorers, the first can opener was not invented until decades later. Danger was never far away, however. In 1845, Sir John Franklin, a Royal Navy officer and experienced explorer, set out to traverse the last unnavigated section of the Northwest Passage. The entire expedition was lost when the two ships became icebound in Victoria Strait. Although Inuit accounts were widely disbelieved and denounced—including, famously, by Charles Dickens—they turned out to be correct and ultimately aided in the recovery of one of Franklin's ships, the HMS Erebus, in September 2014. The Northwest Passage was finally navigated in 1906 by the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen, who relied on small teams and Inuit knowledge to complete the expedition. The exhibition places surprisingly little emphasis on climate change, providing just one set of maps that shows the melting sea ice cover in the Arctic. Yet a theme emerges from some of the most recent pieces, which illustrate Russia's use of seabed geology to claim Arctic territory and portray competing Canadian claims using sectors based on country borders. It becomes clear that as Arctic waters become increasingly navigable, the search for resources, this time largely fossil fuels, and for a northern shipping route between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans continues to drive Arctic exploration, just as it did hundreds of years ago. Listening to recordings from the sound archive of whales and other marine animals that call the Arctic home, one cannot help but wonder how their already imperiled existence will be affected by this rush for Arctic riches. [1]: pending:yes |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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