COLD RECALL COLD RE COLD C ALL - REFLE -REFLECTIONS OF A POLAR EXPLORER COLD RECALL combines the complete texts of Roald Amundsen’s lectures about his expeditions through the North- RECALL west Passage (1903-06) and to the South Pole (1910-12) with the original hand-coloured lantern slides he used to illustrate his lectures. Together they offer a unique insight into how Amundsen presented his expeditions when face to face with an international audience. They also provide the first pictorial account of his successful unlocking of the Northwest Passage and the expedition to the South Pole. C - REFLECTIONS OF TIONS OF A POLA The book includes background information about many of the episodes that Roald Amundsen describes, all too briefly, in his lectures. It also adds further detail about some of the many slides printed in the book, but not specifically men- A POLAR EXPLORER tioned in his manuscripts. The 90-page appendix includes many of the letters, articles, brochures and pamphlets related to Amundsen’s lecture tours. These are rare brochures, published in connection with the actual lectures, along with letters from the Royal Geographical Society in London, the Lecture Agency in London and the Lee Keddick Lecture Agency in New York. The letters illustrate the time-consuming and thorough preparation of the lecture tours and offer an inside look at some of the politics and issues facing Roald Amundsen at the beginning of the last century. Roald Amundsen’s lecture tours and the money he made from the publishing rights for his written accounts and expe- R dition photos were a very important source of income for both his own – and the expeditions’ – finances. In order to EXPLO settle his accounts and fund further expeditions, Amundsen spent a great deal of time negotiating the tours and prepar- ing the lectures. After the expedition to the South Pole, he held more than 175 lectures in Great Britain and the USA alone. R E R “I congratulate Captain Amundsen most heartily on the way he has told the story and on the way he has done the work. It is by efficiency, not only by good luck, that such an expedition can come to a successful conclusion.” -Sir Ernest H. Shackleton “When we want to send out a man to an unknown region where new explorations is to be done, he is the sort of man we should send; he knows what is of importance and what is not; he knows not to do sensational things when he has good work to do, but can appreciate sensational things at the same time, as he has shown us in his most interesting lecture.” - Fridtjof Nansen 9 788282 350037 A Fram Museum Exhibition 1. edition ISBN 978-82-8235-003-7 © The Fram Museum Design/Layout: Marcus Thomassen /// Psycho Penguin Prod. Printed by Allkopi COLD RECALL -REFLECTIONS OF A POLAR EXPLORER Edited by Geir O. Kløver The Fram Museum Oslo – Norway 2009 The Amundsen lantern slides. Photo NB table of contents Introduction Page 6 To the North Magnetic Pole and through the Northwest Passage Page 8 - Read at the Royal Geographical Society, 11 February , 1907 The Norwegian South Polar expedition Page 65 -Read at the Royal Geographical Society,15 November, 1912 Appendices To the Magnetic North Pole, the Norwegian “Gjøa” Expedition Page 164 under the Command of Roald Amundsen - Read at the Geographical Society of the Pacific in San Francisco, California, on 28th February, 1905 by the Hon. Henry Lund, Consul of Sweden and Norway Letters from the Royal Geographical Society 1906-07 regarding Page 172 the Northwest Passage lectures Roald Amundsen’s The Proposed North Polar expedition Page 183 - Read at the Royal Geographical Society , 1909 Roald Amundsen’s account on expanding the scope of the North Page 194 Polar expedition to include the competition for the South Pole Letter from Roald Amundsen to Fridtjof Nansen dated August 22, Page 198 1910 explaining the change of plans for the North Polar expedition Facsimile of the logbook of the Fram recording the onboard Page 202 announcement about the new plan for the North Polar expedition Letters from the Royal Geographical Society 1912, Page 204 regarding the South Pole lectures in Great Britain Letters from the Lecture Agency. Ltd 1911 – 12, Page 209 regarding the South Pole lectures in Great Britain Letters from the Lee Keddick Lecture Agency 1911 – 13, Page 225 regarding the South Pole lectures in the USA Souvenir book from the South Pole lectures in the USA Page 234 Newspaper articles about Roald Amundsen’s South Pole lectures Page 241 5 Introduction When preparing for Cold Recall - Reflections of a Polar Roald Amundsen’s own collection of lantern slides printed Explorer at the Fram Museum, our main objective was to in this book, have a history of their own. They were all show visitors images from the lantern slides that Amundsen used by Amundsen for his lecture tours, and are mostly used in public lectures about his expeditions through the made from the same negatives he used to illustrate his Northwest Passage and to the South Pole. The texts in the books. The lantern slides used for his lectures, however, exhibition are primarily abridged versions of Amundsen’s were coloured by hand to increase the entertainment value own manuscripts from these lectures. for the audience. Even though most of the photographs exist in Amundsen’s books and in public archives like the When planning the accompanying book to the exhibition, National Library of Norway, these slides are the greatest we had the opportunity to expand the exhibition and share collection of lantern slides in existence actually used by some of the many interesting sources we encountered in Roald Amundsen. They present a unique glimpse into how our research. First of all, this book includes the complete Roald Amundsen presented his expeditions, face to face manuscripts from the lectures, as they were held in Great with an international audience, and also the first pictorial Britain and the USA. We have also included background account of his successful unlocking of the Northwest information on many of the episodes that Roald Amundsen Passage and the expedition to the South Pole. describes, all too briefly, in his lectures. Further background information is given about some of the contents of many of Other explorers very often brought professional artists the lantern slides printed in the book, but not specifically and photographers on their expeditions. This was not mentioned in the manuscripts. the case for any of Amundsen’s expeditions. He and the regular crew members took all the photos themselves. The book includes a large appendix covering many of While Godfred Hansen took most of the photos during the letters, articles, brochures and pamphlets related to the Gjøa expedition, Olav Bjaaland is credited with most Amundsen’s lecture tours. These are rare brochures, of the photos from the sledge journey to the South Pole. published in connection with the actual lectures, along with Many of Roald Amundsen’s own photographs proved to letters from the Royal Geographical Society in London, the be damaged when they were developed in Hobart, making Lecture Agency in London and the Lee Keddick Lecture Bjaaland’s pocket camera the only source of photos from Agency in New York. The letters illustrate the time- this historic journey. consuming and thorough preparation of the lecture tours that, in the USA alone, included more than 150 lectures. It In letters regarding the Northwest Passage lecture in is especially interesting to follow the discussion about the 1907, the Royal Geographical Society in London asked fate of Robert F. Scott who, at the time, had not been heard Amundsen to reduce his number of lantern slides from from. Had he reached the South Pole? What would the 150 to 80 or 90. This collection included only 24 slides interest in England be for Amundsen’s lectures when Scott from the Gjøa expedition, making it far from complete. A was heard from, even though Amundsen undoubtedly had number of other photos and some lantern slides exist in been the first to the pole? The uncertainty regarding Robert different public archives, but the majority of these are not F. Scott also explains the different promotion of the lecture hand-coloured. Some of these are included in this book. tours in England and the USA. In England, the lecture tour was called: “How we reached the South Pole”, while Roald The lantern slides from the South Pole, as they are presented Amundsen in America was marketed as: “Discoverer of in this book, must be very close to how the expedition was the South Pole and Winner in the International Race for the presented to Amundsen’s audience. As the slides were not Southern Extremity of the Earth”. numbered, we have used the manuscript of the lecture and Roald Amundsen’s published account “The South Pole” to As many will know, the Norwegian Antarctic Expedition guide the order in which they are now printed. was originally planned and promoted as an expedition to the Arctic. We have used this opportunity to include in The majority of the slides from the South Pole expedition the appendix, Roald Amundsen’s original lecture on the were developed by J.W. Beattie in Hobart, Tasmania and proposed North Pole expedition to the Royal Geographical coloured by TW Cameron. They were the first made Society in 1909. We have also included and translated Roald from the expedition negatives. Roald Amundsen stayed in Amundsen’s account on why he changed the destination of Hobart for only 13 days, thus showing the importance of the expedition, along with his very personal letter to Fridtjof developing the films and making the lantern slides for the Nansen on why he kept his new destination a secret.