Superb Rare RRS Shackleton Bronze & Oak Name Board c.1955-83.
RRS Shackleton was a Royal Research Ship operated by the British scientific research organisations the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey (FIDS), British Antarctic Survey (BAS) and Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) in the Antarctic from 1955 to 1983.
Built in 1954 by Sölvesborgs Varv A/B at Sölvesborg, Sweden, she was launched as MV Arendal (III) for work in the Baltic.
She was purchased in 1955 by the Falkland Islands Dependency Survey (FIDS) and the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) from 1962 as a supply vessel to re-stock British research stations. After conversion to carry more passengers, she was renamed RRS Shackleton and sailed to the Antarctic for the 1955/56 season.
From 1959 scientists from Birmingham University's Sub-department of Geophysics regularly undertook research from Shackleton, focusing on the marine geophysics of the Scotia Arc. This included two-ship seismic refraction experiments working with HMS Protector, sonobuoy work and magnetic surveys.
At Deception Island in 1966, the Shackleton met and provisioned Bill Tilman's SV Mischief, the first private expedition to visit a British Antarctic base. Shackleton joined the rescue of Deception Island base members when the volcano erupted in December 1967 and again in February 1969.
Shackleton was operated by the NERC after 1969, and underwent major conversion to fit her as a oceanographic research ship, and her first Antarctic cruise with NERC was in 1971/72, continuing geophysical and marine geology work on the Scotia Arc.
On 4 February 1976, while taking part in a British economic survey of the Falkland Islands led by Lord Shackleton (son of the Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton), RRS Shackleton was fired on by the Argentine destroyer ARA Almirante Storni in a precursor to the Falklands Conflict.
She was finally withdrawn from service in May 1983 and sold to Gardline Shipping Limited and renamed Profiler.
The solid Oak 66” x 11.5” name board has been gently cleaned and given a rub down to remove any surface detritus and it’s been given several coats of wax polish to to nourish the grain, as it had dried out from many years at sea. The solid bronze letters were removed, washed and partially polished to retain its original patina, then refitted with the original bronze screws to the reverse.
This is an amazing find and great piece of maritime history!
£2995
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