The Museum
The museum is located in the old whaling station of Grytviken. The building was once the whaling manager’s home and office. Being one of the remotest museums in the world we would like to show you some of the rooms so you can take a virtual tour.
The first villa burnt down and was replaced by the current building in 1914. As well as providing housing for the station manager and his family the villa was also the administrative centre of the whaling station.
The villa had comfortably furnished rooms for the manager and senior staff, complete with numerous house plants carefully tended by the steward. The members of Shackleton’s Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition stayed at Grytviken on their way south with Endurance. Expedition photographer Frank Hurley recalled that the new villa “..sported a billiard-table, piano, and real live geraniums blooming in the box windows. The dinner table was graced with spotless linen so unlike our four week old stain absorbers, and tastefully bedecked with a splendid display of blue and gold china-ware.”
View the museum rooms on the clickable floor plan below
Click on a room to see more information and go to the room page.
Jarvis Room
The Javis Room displays information and artefacts relating to the administration of South Georgia, the British Antarctic Survey presence and the 1982 conflict.
Visit the room page here:
Jarvis Room
Prince Room
The Prince Room houses our natural history collection. It is named after the late naturalist Peter Prince, who worked extensively on South Georgia.
Visit the room page here:
Prince Room
Bonner Room
Nigel Bonner, former Deputy Director of the British Antarctic Survey, established South Georgia Whaling Museum in 1992. His contribution is remembered in this room, which houses displays on the South Georgia Heritage Trust, the history of the building and the museum, and the discovery of the island.
Visit the room page here:
Bonner Room
Fullerton Room
Named after the Commissioner for South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, who supported and sanctioned the establishment of the museum, this room is devoted to the history of exploration and science on the island.
Visit the room page here:
Fullerton Room
Allardyce Room
Named after a former Governor of the Falkland Islands who regulated the whaling industry, the Allardyce Room houses our collection of objects relating to the heyday of the whaling industry on South Georgia.
Visit the room page here:
Allardyce Room
Larsen Room
C A Larsen was the Norwegian founder of Grytviken, and a pioneer of whaling in the Southern Ocean. Named after him, this room has objects and archives relating to the early history of sealing and whaling on South Georgia.
Visit the room page here:
Larsen Room
Ringdal or Whalers Bunk Room
This room houses a recreation of whaler’s accommodation on the island in the mid-1900s. Whalers were known to be very houseproud, and the room reflects the limited but clean and orderly space that they had.
Visit the room page here:
Ringdal or Whalers Bunk Room
Carr Maritime Gallery
The building was named in honour of Tim and Pauline Carr. The Carr Maritime Gallery is situated in a former workshop adjacent to the Museum. It was officially opened by HRH Princess Anne during her visit to Grytviken in March 2009.
Visit the room page here:
Carr Maritime Gallery
Strand Room (Whalers Traders Room)
South Georgia’s whaling stations were not just places where the great leviathans were dragged ashore and then processed. They were also largely self-sustaining industrial complexes where boilers and hulls could be mended, and blades and chain links forged. Skilled and inventive blacksmiths and engineers kept the stations running, and their work is recorded here.
Visit the room page here:
Strand Room (Whalers Traders Room)
Public Restrooms
Don’t worry we do have modern facilities.
This image is from the Dias shipwreck, which is one of three small sealers and whale catchers on the beach at Grytviken.
Also take the 3D virtual tour of Grytviken and the Museum made in 2014 by Rolf Stange and hosted on https://www.antarctic.eu many thanks to Rolf for this!
