''Antarctic'' was a Swedish steamship built in

Drammen Drammen () is a city and municipality in Viken, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the south-eastern and most populated part of Norway. Drammen municipality also includes smaller towns and villages such as Konner ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

, in 1871. She was used on several research expeditions to the

Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada ( Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm ( Greenland), Finland, Iceland ...

region and to

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...

from 1898 to 1903. In 1895 the first confirmed landing on the mainland of Antarctica was made from this ship.

The ship

''Antarctic'' was a

barque A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing vessel with three or more masts having the fore- and mainmasts rigged square and only the mizzen (the aftmost mast) rigged fore and aft. Sometimes, the mizzen is only partly fore-and-aft rigged, b ...

with three masts and equipped with a

steam engine A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a cylinder. This pushing force can be ...

, built in 1871 at Holmen in

in Norway under the name ''Cap Nor''.
Alfred Nathorst, ”Två Somrar i Norra Ishafvet”, first part (in Swedish), 1900, accessdate=2010-12-10
Henrik Bull, ”The cruise of the "Antarctic" to the South Polar regions”, 1896, accessdate=2010-12-10, Department of Earth Sciences, Uppsala University (in Swedish), accessdate=2010-12-10 Initially ''Antarctic'' was used for

seal hunting Seal hunting, or sealing, is the personal or commercial hunting of seals. Seal hunting is currently practiced in ten countries: United States (above the Arctic Circle in Alaska), Canada, Namibia, Denmark (in self-governing Greenland only), I ...

around Svalbard,

Jan Mayen Jan Mayen () is a Norwegian volcanic island in the Arctic Ocean with no permanent population. It is long (southwest-northeast) and in area, partly covered by glaciers (an area of around the Beerenberg volcano). It has two parts: larger ...

and

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is ...

.
Nordisk Familjebok, Project Runeberg, Linköping University (in Swedish), accessdate=2010-12-10 During that period the ship was captained by Gullik Jensen. In the early 1890s Norwegian ship-owner

Svend Foyn Svend Foyn (July 9, 1809 – November 30, 1894) was a Norwegian whaling, shipping magnate and philanthropist. He pioneered revolutionary methods for hunting and processing whales. Svend Foyn introduced the modern harpoon cannon and broug ...

wanted to expand his business to the Antarctic Ocean thereby needing capable ships. Foyn then purchased ''Cap Nor'', made extensive repairs and after completion renamed the ship ''Antarctic''. From 1893 the ship was deployed to the

Antarctic ocean The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean, generally taken to be south of 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is regarded as the second-small ...

for

whale hunting Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry a ...

. In 1897 the ship was purchased by

Alfred Gabriel Nathorst Alfred Gabriel Nathorst (7 November 1850 – 20 January 1921) was a Swedish Arctic explorer, geologist, and palaeobotanist. Life He was born in Väderbrunn in Sweden. Nathorst's interest in geology was awoken by Charles Lyell’s ‘’Pri ...

for his planned expedition to Svalbard. Again extensive repairs were made prior to the expedition in 1898. In 1899 Nathorst sold the ship to Georg Carl Amdrup for his expedition to

East Greenland Tunu, originally Østgrønland ("East Greenland"), was one of the three counties (''amter'') of Greenland until 31 December 2008. The county seat was at the main settlement, Tasiilaq. The county's population in 2005 was around 3,800. The county ...

. In 1900 Amdrup sold ''Antarctic'' to Otto Nordenskjöld who needed the ship for his Antarctic expedition.

The expeditions

In 1893 ''Antarctic'' captained by Leonard Kristensen set off on a whaling expedition to Antarctica led by

Henrik Johan Bull Henrik Johan Bull (13 October 18441 June 1930) was a Norwegian businessman and whaler. Henry Bull was one of the pioneers in the exploration of Antarctica. Biography Henrik Johan Bull was born at Stokke in Vestfold County, Norway. He attended s ...

and financed by Foyn. The ship was equipped with 11 harpoon guns, an arsenal of explosives, 8 whaleboats and 31 men and left

Tønsberg Tønsberg , historically Tunsberg, is a city and municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, eastern Norway, located around south-southwest of Oslo on the western coast of the Oslofjord near its mouth onto the Skagerrak. The administrative c ...

on September 20, 1893. The first summer was spent around the

Kerguelen Islands The Kerguelen Islands ( or ; in French commonly ' but officially ', ), also known as the Desolation Islands (' in French), are a group of islands in the sub-Antarctic constituting one of the two exposed parts of the Kerguelen Plateau, a l ...

with winter camp in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

. On September 28, 1894, the ship went off to sea heading for the

Ross Sea The Ross Sea is a deep bay of the Southern Ocean in Antarctica, between Victoria Land and Marie Byrd Land and within the Ross Embayment, and is the southernmost sea on Earth. It derives its name from the British explorer James Clark Ross who vi ...

. On January 24, 1895, a boat was put ashore at Cape Adare at the northern extremity of

Victoria Land Victoria Land is a region in eastern Antarctica which fronts the western side of the Ross Sea and the Ross Ice Shelf, extending southward from about 70°30'S to 78°00'S, and westward from the Ross Sea to the edge of the Antarctic Plateau. I ...

with six men including Bull, Borchgrevink, Kristensen and Tunzelmann. The party performed the first confirmed landing on the continent of Antarctica, exactly who went ashore first was never cleared as all members claimed the honor (possibly British-American sealer John Davis had already made a landing on the

Antarctic Peninsula The Antarctic Peninsula, known as O'Higgins Land in Chile and Tierra de San Martín in Argentina, and originally as Graham Land in the United Kingdom and the Palmer Peninsula in the United States, is the northernmost part of mainland Antarctic ...

on February 7, 1821, this claim can, however, not be confirmed).
Norska Nasjonalbiblioteket-National Library of Norway (in Norwegian), accessdate=2010-12-10
Norsk biografisk leksikon-Norwegian Biografical encyclopedia (in Norwegian), accessdate=2010-12-10
South-Pole.com, An Antarctic Timeline, accessdate=2010-12-10
Antarctic-Circle.org, Antarctic voyages and expeditions, accessdate=2010-12-10
New Zealand History online, Ministry for Culture and Heritage, accessdate=2010-12-10
, Norway's Forgotten Explorer.org, Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage, accessdate=2010-12-10
, Antarctica.org, Antarctic History, accessdate=2010-12-10 In 1898 ''Antarctic'' captained by Emil Nilsson carried Nathorst's polar expedition to Bear Island (Norway), Bear Island, Svalbard and

Kong Karls Land Kong Karls Land or King Charles Land is an island group in the Svalbard archipelago, in the Arctic Ocean. The island group covers an area of and is made up of the islands of Kongsøya, Svenskøya, Abel Island, Helgoland Island, and Tirpitzøy ...

. Among the participating scientists were

Axel Hamberg Axel Hamberg (17 January 1863 – 28 June 1933) was a Swedish mineralogist, geographer and explorer. Biography Hamberg was born in Stockholm, Sweden. He was the son of Nils Peter Hamberg (1815-1902) and Emma Augusta Christina Härnström (18 ...

, Otto Kjellström,

Gustaf Kolthoff Gustaf Isak Kolthoff (14 December 1845 – 25 October 1913) was a Swedish ornithologist, taxidermist and naturalist. He worked as a curator of the museum at Uppsala and set up a private museum where he is credited with the creation of the first nat ...

and

Henrik Hesselman Henrik Hesselman (28 January 1874 – 11 July 1943) was a Swedish professor, foresters, and botanist. Biography Oskar August Henrik Vilhelm Hesselman was born in Stockholm, Sweden. His parents were factory owner Bror August Hesselman and Marie ...

. In 1899 the ship left on an expedition also under the command of Nathorst to

North Greenland The Northern Inspectorate of Greenland also known as North Greenland was a Danish inspectorate on Greenland consisting of the trading centers and missionary stations along the northwest coast of the island. History North Greenland was establis ...

with the dual purpose of searching for survivors of the 1897 Andrée's Arctic Balloon Expedition and geographical mapping the area.
Alfred Nathorst, ”Två Somrar i Norra Ishafvet”, second part (in Swedish), 1900, accessdate=2010-12-10 Later the same year ''Antarctic'' carried Amdrup's expedition to

. In 1901 the ship, then on loan from Nordenskjöld, carried the second season of the Swedish-Russian Arc-of-Meridian Expedition under the command of

Gerard De Geer Baron Gerard Jacob De Geer (20 November 1858 – 24 July 1943) was a Swedish geologist who made significant contributions to Quaternary geology, particularly geomorphology and geochronology. De Geer is best known for his work on varves. In 1890 ...

to Svalbard.
Department of Earth Sciences, Lisbeth Levander, Uppsala University (in Swedish), accessdate=2010-12-10 On October 16, 1901 ''Antarctic'' now captained by

Carl Anton Larsen Carl Anton Larsen (7 August 1860 – 8 December 1924) was a Norwegian-born whaler and Antarctic explorer who made important contributions to the exploration of Antarctica, the most significant being the first discovery of fossils for which he ...

left Gothenburg harbor on Nordenskjold's Antarctic expedition.
South-Pole.com, Nordenskjöld article, accessdate=2010-12-10
Hvar 8 dag, Project Runeberg, Linköping University (in Swedish), accessdate=2010-12-10, Bjerrang, Antarctic quest, accessdate=2010-12-10 This would become the ship's last voyage.

The ship wrecking

After exploring parts of the

South Shetland Islands The South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands with a total area of . They lie about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, and between southwest of the nearest point of the South Orkney Islands. By the Antarctic Treaty of 195 ...

the expedition continued through the Antarctic Sound towards the

. On January 15, 1902

Hope Bay Hope Bay ( Spanish: ''Bahía Esperanza'') on Trinity Peninsula, is long and wide, indenting the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula and opening on Antarctic Sound. It is the site of the Argentinian Antarctic settlement Esperanza Base, established ...

was discovered. In February Nordenskjöld chose

Snow Hill Island Snow Hill Island is an almost completely snowcapped island, long and wide, lying off the east coast of the Antarctic Peninsula. It is separated from James Ross Island to the north-east by Admiralty Sound and from Seymour Island to the north b ...

as winter camp for part of the expedition. After all preparations were completed ''Antarctic'' left for the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubou ...

. After the winter the ship left the Falklands on November 5 heading back to the Antarctic Peninsula by way of

Ushuaia Ushuaia ( , ) is the capital of Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur Province, Argentina. With a population of nearly 75,000 and a location below the 54th parallel south latitude, Ushuaia claims the title of world's souther ...

for supplies. On December 29 ''Antarctic'' was trapped in pack ice near Hope Bay, and some of the crew was put ashore. ''Antarctic'' later broke free and continued towards Paulet Island; on the way the ship once again was trapped in pack ice on January 3, 1903. On February 3 the ship again broke free but was now damaged and leaking. Captain Larsen now intended to beach ''Antarctic'' on Paulet Island, but the ship was too damaged and sank about off the coast on February 12, 1903., Chalmers Magazine, Chalmers University of Technology (in Swedish), accessdate=2010-12-10 In November all crewmembers (including

Carl Skottsberg Carl Johan Fredrik Skottsberg (1 December 1880 – 14 June 1963) was a Swedish botanist and explorer of Antarctica. Life Skottsberg was born in Karlshamn on 1 December 1880 the son of Carl Adolf Skottsberg a schoolmaster and his wife, Maria ...

Johan Gunnar Andersson Johan Gunnar Andersson (3 July 1874 – 29 October 1960)"Andersson, Johan Gunnar" in '' The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 385. was a Swedish archaeologist, paleontologist and g ...

José María Sobral ''Alférez de Navío'' José María Sobral (April 14, 1880 – April 14, 1961) was an Argentine explorer, geologist, naval officer and author who rose to prominence by participating in the Swedish Antarctic Expedition (1901–1904) becomin ...

and

Frank Wilbert Stokes Frank Wilbert Stokes, also known as Frank Stokes, Frank W. Stokes and F. W. Stokes
Smithsonian American Art Muse ...

) were rescued by the Argentine corvette ''Uruguay'' captained by Julián Irízar.

Epitaph

When Nathorst heard about the ship wrecking he commented "seems to me more glorious than if she had gone to meet the usual fate of vessels to slowly rot in some port, or to be used for something far off from her designation and purposes as an icy seas and research vessel". In 1944 Johan Gunnar Andersson published a commemorative book ''Antarctic :Stolt har hon levat Stolt skall hon dö – Antarctic: proud she lived proud she shall die''. The Antarctic Sound, Antarctic Bay (Greenland) and Antarctic Haven in

, as well as Antarctic Bay in

South Georgia South Georgia ( es, Isla San Pedro) is an island in the South Atlantic Ocean that is part of the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. It lies around east of the Falkland Islands. Stretching in the east ...

and the Antarctic Sound in Antarctica, were named after the ship.''Catalogue of place names in northern East Greenland'', Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland

References

External links