A stunning collection of rare images of Captain Scott’s ill-fated Terra Nova expedition to Antarctica have been rediscovered after spending decades hidden in a photo archive.
The 131 photos were taken by Herbert Ponting, the official photographer for the historic quest to become the first humans to reach the South Pole.
The fascinating snaps capture a happier time before the expedition descended into tragedy when Captain Robert Scott and four colleagues died on the perilous return leg from the Pole.
One candid photo shows Captain Scott sat on the deck of the Terra Nova ship smoking a pipe surrounded by other members of the crew en route to Antarctica in December 1910.
A stunning collection of rare images of Captain Scott’s ill-fated Terra Nova expedition to Antarctica are up for sale after being rediscovered. This photo shows the expedition’s cook Thomas Clissold attempting to capture an Emperor Penguin in April 1911
Captain Robert Scott and four colleagues died on the perilous return leg from the Pole. This candid shot shows Captain Scott (left) smoking his pipe on the deck as Lieutenant Henry Rennick and other members of the expedition crew sit around reading in December 1910
The Terra Nova expedition took place between June 1910 and February 1912. Here Frederick Hooper, one of the crew domestic stewards, is pictured eating a can of beans while sat on top of a Heinz box in January 1912
Another shows meteorologist Sir George Simpson conducting balloon experiments to test the atmosphere and determine how altitude affected temperature in April 1911.
He recorded the temperature and wind observations at the base camp at Cape Evans in Antarctica.
Ponting worked in a tiny photographic darkroom there processing high-quality images taken on glass plates.
He was one of the first men to use a portable movie camera in Antarctica, watching on as scientists studied the behaviour of the native killer whales, seals and penguins.
The collection is now up for sale for £8,000 after being hidden away in a photo archive at an estate in the Midlands for many decades.
The support party had 65 members. Herbert Ponting, the historic quest’s official photographer, was caught on camera photographing the Terra Nova in ice in December 1910
The team of five men who set off for the Pole in November 1911 consisted of Captain Scott, Lawrence Oates, Edward Wilson, Edgar Evans and Henry Bowers. This snap shows meteorologist Dr George Simpson inflating one of his weather balloons he used to test the atmosphere and determine how altitude affected temperature in April 1911
The reached the Pole on January 17, 1912, only to discover Norwegian Roald Amundsen had beaten them to it by 34 days. This shot shows Cecil Meares cutting up seal meat for the dogs with an axe
Ponting’s photos show many members of the 65-strong support party for the Terra Nova expedition from June 1910 to February 1912.
The team of five men who set off for the Pole in November 1911 consisted of Captain Scott, Lawrence Oates, Edward Wilson, Edgar Evans and Henry Bowers.
The reached the Pole on January 17, 1912, only to discover Norwegian Roald Amundsen had beaten them to it by 34 days.
Ponting tried to get as close as possible to animals he encountered, both on the Terra Nova in the sea ice and later on Ross Island. Here is a photo Ponting took of a penguin next to tins of Lyle’s golden syrup for an advertisement
Ponting worked in a tiny photographic darkroom at the base camp at Cape Evans in Antarctica processing high-quality images taken on glass plates. This photo shows Lieutenant Henry Rinnick leading one of the ponies out onto sea ice in January 1911
Ponting was a celebrated photographer at the time and his images were to later be used by Captain Scott for university talks about the expedition. Here the expedition’s cook Thomas Clissold (right) and Anton Omelchenko are seen attempting to capture an emperor penguin in April 1911
On one occasion, he escaped death when a pod of eight killer whales broke up the ice floe he was standing on in McMurdo Sound.
During the winter of 1911, Ponting took many photos of Captain Scott and the other members of the expedition in their Cape Evans hut.
Ponting boarded the Terra Nova for its returned to Britain in February 1912 with an inventory of more than 1,700 photographic plates.
Chris Albury, a specialist at Dominic Winter in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, who are selling the archive, said: ‘Ponting was a celebrated photographer of his time and there is a great interest in Captain Scott’s expedition particularly because of its tragic denouement.
‘These photos which have been hidden away in a picture archive provide a fantastic flavour of the expedition and have such good variety.
‘We don’t think they were printed by Ponting himself and it is possible they may have been printed from negatives following Ponting’s death.’
The auction takes place on March 9.
On one occasion, Ponting narrowly escaped death when a pod of eight killer whales broke up the ice floe he was standing on in McMurdo Sound. Here he is posed up for a self portrait on board the Terra Nova
The 131 photo collection is being sold by an auction house in Cirencester, Gloucestershire. This picture shows the ill-fated Terra Nova in December 1910
The auction takes place on March 9. Here physicist Charles Seymour Wright poses for a photograph with a pony on the ice