illuminator newsletter #27
RECENTLY
Dive Season 2023: The RV David Thompson exited the Erebus wreck area on September 19th, for a total of two weeks at the site this year. She then returned the diving barge to Gjoa Haven, where residents were given a two-hour presentation of artifacts and photography from this season. No images were released, but intriguingly one resident believed they saw a photograph of a pistol. Nothing definite is yet known.
The Thompson then headed west on September 22nd and turned north into Terror Bay, not emerging until 48 hours later. As the diving barge was not brought with, this visit to the Terror wreck was more likely to monitor the site than to excavate artifacts.
There is no standard timeframe on when dive season details are released, but in general: the better the season went, the longer the wait. Last year, after finding a folio in the steward’s pantry, details weren’t released until mid-December. And after the big 2019 season, Parks didn’t release details until late January the following year.
The next issue of this newsletter will be sent as soon as details emerge from the 2023 season.
Sotheby’s daguerreotypes sale: On the same day of the relics presentation in Gjoa Haven, the lost/2nd set of Franklin Expedition daguerreotypes was sold in London. On an estimate of £150k–£200k, the final sale price was £444,500 (link). As of this writing, no details have emerged regarding either the identity of the buyer, or if the dags will be leaving the UK. The latter issue may potentially trigger an export ban and an attempt to raise matching funds (as we saw with the Franklin search flag earlier this year).
29 October 2023
Today I released a new Illuminator article, publishing photography of very early Beechey Island relics in the city of Bath that had been effectively forgotten. The upshot is: if you live in a city or town anywhere in the British Isles, it is possible that your local scientific or literary institution may be quietly holding Franklin Expedition relics in their basement. I discuss in the article two famous lost Franklin relics in particular that may now be found.
https://www.illuminator.blog/p/bath.html
SINCE THE LAST ISSUE
22 October 2023
Fabiënne Tetteroo (of JamesFitzjames.com) has discovered an original, previously unseen photograph of one of the officers in the well-known “The Arctic Searching Squadron” sketch from the Illustrated London News: John Hillary Allard, Master of the Pioneer. The back of the photograph states that his age was 29. The five officers sketch (1 May 1852, page 336) appeared at the commencement of the Belcher search for Franklin.
13 September 2023
On the heels of his identification of a wooden model of the monument from the Sŭ-pung-er vault/grave (see last issue), Russ Taichman has published an article on another piece from the Hall collection at the Smithsonian: Sŭ-pung-er’s disassembled kayak — made of wood salvaged from the HMS Erebus wreck (seen in photo above).
Published in the Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center Newsletter, May 2023 issue (Taichman’s article is at pages 71-72 of the PDF):
https://repository.si.edu/handle/10088/116560
10 September 2023
Alison Freebairn has written an article filling in a host of biographical details for Henry Foster Collins, 2nd Master on the Erebus. The James Fitzjames character sketch of Collins has a different ring after reading what Alison has found.
https://finger-post.blog/2023/09/10/searching-for-henry-foster-collins/
8 October 2023
Olga Kimmins has written an overview of the Franklin Expedition daguerreotypes and derivatives. Kimmins presents a new argument dating the Matlock portraits set to the 1890s, much later than previously thought, as well as an earlier date for the RGS photography. Kimmins has also paid for new photography of both sets at Greenwich, one of which her article publishes for the first time. As well, relevant to provenance questions, Kimmins has details of a case that held the SPRI daguerreotypes set upon their arrival at the institute: a fur-lined box, with a plaque marked “Lady Franklin” set into the lid.
https://www.thethousandthpart.com/notes/the-big-picture
22 September 2023
Frank Michael Schuster has written a piece for Visions of the North considering aspects of Beard’s photography as they regard the Franklin daguerreotypes.
https://visionsnorth.blogspot.com/2023/09/richard-beard-daguerreotype-and-images.html
9 September 2023
Fabiënne Tetteroo at JamesFitzjames.com has written an overview of the Franklin Expedition portraits and sketches, with speculation on the history of the sets.
https://jamesfitzjames.com/mystery-dags/