The 22 negatives were found in photographer Herbert Ponting’s darkroom at Cape Evans, which served as Captain Scott’s expedition base in 1910-12.
They are from Ernest Shackleton’s 1914-1917 Ross Sea Party,
which spent time living in Scott’s hut after being stranded on Ross
Island when their ship blew out to sea, according to the Antarctic Heritage Trust in New Zealand, which ‘painstakingly’ conserved the photos.
‘It’s an exciting find and we are delighted to see them exposed after a century,’ said the Trust’s executive director Nigel Watson.
However, the identity of the photographer remains unknown, according to the Trust which removed the cellulose-nitrate negatives from the hut earlier this year.
Experts discovered the images – many of which are damaged – clumped together in a small box, as part of the Ross Sea Heritage Restoration Project, which saw the conservation of 10,000 objects.
In 2010, the Antarctic Heritage Trust discovered three crates of whisky and two crates of brandy under Ernest Shackleton’s 1908 base during conservation work.
To view the images visit the Antarctic Heritage Trust website
