When Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ship, the Endurance slipped under the Antarctic waters of the Weddell Sea after being crushed in a vise of glacial ice, no human would see it for 104 years.
Considered by marine archeologists as the crown jewel of sought-after maritime wrecks, the Endurance lay submerged 10,000 feet, considered far too deep under polar ice and dangerous weather to ever be found—until marine archeologist Mensun Bound, Director of Exploration for Endurance 22 Expedition and crew saw its ghostly outline revealed on their research ship’s sonar.
The story of the ill-fated Endurance and its crew’s harrowing escape and Bound’s determination to find it are the twin themes in Bound’s recently published book, The Ship Beneath the Ice: The Discovery of Shackleton’s Endurance, a book The London Times Literary Supplement praised as “gloriously writer …With the verve of a thriller, Bound’s narrative deftly weaves together his voyages and Shackleton’s…Bound is blessed with a poet’s ear for richly evocative language.”
At his first appearance on the east coast since the ship’s discovery, Mensun Bound will speak at Washington College about his role as the director of exploration on the expedition that discovered the Endurance. Bound is also Trustee of the Falklands Islands Maritime Heritage Trust.
The Spy recently connected with Mensun Bound via Zoom while he was on the west coast leg of his book tour.
The talk will be held April 12 at 7:00 p.m. in Decker Theatre at Washington College’s Daniel Gibson Center for the Arts. Guests are invited to a book signing and reception with the speaker following his talk. Bound’s new book will be available for purchase. This event is the last in the Center for Environment and Society’s winter speaker series, “A Polar Expedition with Washington College,” which spotlights experts who have made recent discoveries in the polar regions. It is free and open to the public, but pre-registration is required,as seating is limited. For more information and to register, go here.
This video is approximately thirteen minutes in length.
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