CHARLOTTE THE CURATOR REFLECTS ON THE BUSIEST SEASON EVER

The new Slop Chest display

As the Curatorial Intern at the museum, my main project this season has been to fully document all of the objects in our collection as we make the move to ADLIB, our new collections management system. This has involved a lot of object research and making sure that all of the information in the ADLIB database is stored in the right place – not the most glamorous job but certainly an important one.
I’ve also created a new display for the Grytviken Post Office to better represent its previous function as the whaling station store, called the ‘Slop Chest’. There the whalers were able to buy everything from clothing, sweets and stationery to tobacco, skis and photography equipment, so it really was an important part of local life.

The attractive Thor Dahl cap badge has stars representing the Southern Cross constellation with a penguin and an enamelled flag with a whale motif

Sarah and I wearing the whalers’ caps

This season we received several new additions to our collection, among them a lovely pair of whaling officers’ caps and badges from Lyle Craigie-Halkett, which will make a great addition to our whaling history display.

March has come around very abruptly and we are in the lengthy process of winterising the museum and preparing to go home. Of course, there was still time for us to venture out into the island and to work with the scientists. Museum Assistants Vickie and Kerstin managed to get away on a last hut holiday to Maiviken for a night, and three of us were able to assist the BAS scientists weighing the giant petrel chicks.

Overall it has been our busiest season yet – by the end we will have hosted 79 visits from tourist ships totalling around 10,000 visitors this year. We have been treated to both glorious sunshine and wild storms, and many a feast from the folks at KEP. Although I’m not yet ready to leave, SGHT have been kind enough to arrange for me to intern in the Falkland Islands Museum, so I’m looking forward to starting work there after an unforgettable Southern summer.

How we are feeling at the end of the long season