" Shackleton's grave is impressive in its simplicity and borrows dignity from the grandeur of its surroundings. By its side I first read the service, which was printed both in English and Norwegian, the stone being draped with a large Union Jack. At the end of the service I pulled the retaining cord, and thus releasing the Union Jack, disclosed the rugged and beautiful stone of grey granite inscribed merely with the name and dates of birth and death of the great spirit whose mortal remains had been laid to rest beneath it..."

So wrote the governor of the Falkland Islands and Dependencies, Arnold Hudson on 24 February 1928, just after he had celebrated one of the few funerals to take place on South Georgia.

Shackleton died of a heart attack while on his way to Antarctica for his fourth expedition in his ship QUEST. He was 47 years old. His body was already on its way back to England, but his wife had it diverted back to Grytviken, to be buried in the land he loved. He now lies in a tiny, peaceful cemetery very close to the whaling station with a few whalers, a British governor who died in an accident and an Argentine soldier killed during the Falkland war. The head of his grave is the only one that points to the south, all the others face east. On the stone there is the nine pointed star that belonged to the Shackleton family and on the reverse you can read a quote from Robert Browning- Shackleton's favorite poet - "I hold that a man should strive to the uttermost for his life's set prize."

Shackleton's grave is amongst the historical monuments in Grytviken that are the care of a British couple Tim and Pauline Carr, who have been here for four years. They met us at the jetty and invited all ten of the crew into the museum's anteroom for breakfast: eggs, bacon, sausage, scones, marmalade galore!

Since 1968, the Carr's home (in which three would be a crowd) has been a 28 foot engineless wooden cutter called the 'Curlew'. She will celebrate her hundredth birthday in 1998 and is a traditional Falmouth Quay Punt. The Curlew has taken the Carrs from the Arctic circle to the Antarctic Peninsula. They first arrived in South Georgia in November 1992.

In 1995, they chose to become the first family, since the end of the whaling days, to live year round on the island. Since then they have played an invaluable part in the establishment of the South Georgia whaling museum. The Curlew is moored alongside the rusting seal catcher 'Petrel'. She is always ready for sea and many times has taken them around the island to observe the wildlife and also to ski and climb, activities they have taken up for the first time since coming to South Georgia.

The museum is housed in the building that was once the living quarters of the management known as the 'Villa'. It is filled with artifacts, books and documents that tell the history of the whaling era and is kept in good order by the Carrs. They are also coordinating 7 volunteer workers, who are renovating the church which Captain Larsen had had built in Norway and reassembled here on Christmas Eve of 1913.

We are not the only guests at the Carrs impromptu breakfast. There is also a lively, dark skinned and blue eyed Frenchman. He is Jerome Poncet, well known in the sailing world for his trip around the world in 1969 on the boat 'Damien', but especially as 'the' expert in these remote Antarctic and sub Antarctic seas. Jerome and his life companion Sally, a tall, blond girl from Tasmania with whom in 1975 he built 'Damien II', have sailed the southern oceans for twenty years. Damien II is a 51 ft schooner, specially designed to withstand the rigours of the Polar seas and was the prototype for Pelagic: steel hull, lifting keel and 86 horse power engine.

For a number of years, Jerome and Sally, who is a biologist, together with their 3 sons, (the first of whom was born in Leith Harbour on board the boat) lived on board Damien II while monitoring seal and sea bird colonies. Since then Damien has been chartered many times by the British Antarctic Survey and various film and television crews, notably the BBC. We discover that Jerome has a washing machine on Damien II: "we had 3 children on board!" he tells me laughing while proudly lifting the bunk under which it is located. He also explains how he used to make the hot water on the stove for the wash cycle!

In appearance, Jerome looks like a tough pirate of another era, clad in fishing boat quality, begreased jacket and trousers and always sporting a hand rolled cigarette dangling from his lips. Known as the 'guru' of southern sailing, he has accumulated a storehouse of knowledge, some readily forthcoming, some not! He is always animated and a born raconteur. The 'Curlew' and 'Damien II'- together with Bill Tilman's 45 foot 'Mischief', were chosen in 1995 for an issue of new stamps to mark the special connection they had with the island of South Georgia. This first day cover of 16.11.95 is, of course, available for sale at the museum!

Elena Caputo

Grytviken
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