This month we are hosting a series of specially curated tours around the Fair Maid's House, about our former Secretary, Ernest Shackleton. Our visitor centre will be opening to the public on 11th May. And we were delighted to present the RSGS Bartholomew Globe to James Cheshire.
Discovery Day: Ernest Shackleton
Friday 26th May & Saturday 27th May
On Friday 26th & Saturday 27th May, RSGS is offering a rare insight into the life and adventures of famed explorer Ernest Shackleton, told through a series of tours around the Fair Maid’s House in Perth.
Join us as we explore Shackleton’s life in four parts:
Shackleton in Scotland: RSGS Chief Executive Mike Robinson kicks off the tour by setting the scene. He looks at Shackleton’s time as Secretary of RSGS and the path it set him on.
Shackleton Beyond the Ice: Discover the non-polar life of the Antarctic legend from his beginnings in Ireland to his last expedition on the Quest. Storytellers Nicola Wright and Lindsey Gibb will give an insight into his life both on and off the ice.
Putting Shackleton on the Map: Margaret Wilkes from the RSGS Collections Team offers a cartographic view of Shackleton’s adventures in the Antarctic, featuring atlases, maps and charts, including a unique map signed by Shackleton himself.
Shackleton in Words and Images: RSGS Writer-in-Residence Jo Woolf shares episodes of his story, told through precious items in our collections, such as Shackleton’s application for the post of Secretary to RSGS in 1903; rarely seen photographs of the Endurance and the men who sailed on her; and of course, the opportunity to sit at Shackleton’s desk!
Tickets are £20 per person and there are a limited number of tickets for each tour, so be sure to book online before they sell out!
We are delighted to say that our Fair Maid’s House visitor centre reopens to the public on Thursday 11th May 2023, with an exhibition by Perth College UHI’s art department. Housed in the oldest secular building in Perth, the Fair Maid’s House is a geographical delight. Visitors can watch the planet from space and see the continents evolve in the Earth Room, or learn about the hottest and coldest places on Earth in the Education Room. In the atmospheric Explorers’ Room, you can learn about maps and explorers, or just curl up with a fascinating book.
Over the summer, we plan to open the Fair Maid’s House from 12:30pm to 4:00pm every Thursday, Friday and Saturday. So please come along and visit us – we look forward to welcoming you all back to the Geographical Heart of Scotland!
If you would be interested in volunteering at the Fair Maid's House, we would be delighted to hear from you through email at enquiries@rsgs.org or by phone at 01738 455050.
James Cheshire - Bartholomew Globe recipient
In April, we were delighted to present our Bartholomew Globe to James Cheshire, Professor of Geographic Information and Cartography in the UCL Department of Geography, and Director of the UCL Social Data Institute. James received this award for expertly demonstrating the value of storytelling through maps to help visualise some of the world's most pressing challenges today, highlighting them in new ways and helping to develop solutions.
James’s work has included investigations into the use of cycle hire schemes, the spatial analysis of surnames, and new ways of visualising population data. Among other publications he has co-authored three critically acclaimed books with Oliver Uberti, joint winner of the Bartholomew Globe: London: The Information Capital; Where the Animals Go; and Atlas of the Invisible, showing that good innovative cartography is as relevant today as it has always been.
Meet the Experts Tuesday 23rd May 2pm-3pm
This month, for our latest Meet the Experts session, we will be joined by Dr Tania Mendo (Scottish Oceans Institute), Professor Nina Laurie (University of St Andrews) and Maria Carmen, Amanda Valdez & Oliver Calle from PRISMA (a Peruvian NGO) to share their learning about how coastal communities in Peru have adapted to the impacts of climate change and El Niño.
We continue to make weekly additions to our blog (rsgs.org/blog), covering a range of interesting topics and news about our awards and projects. Recent posts include:
Journey with purpose: Heart of Arabia Expedition: in 1917, St John Philby journeyed east to west across Arabia, from the Arabian Gulf to the Red Sea; 105 years later, the Heart of Arabia Expedition set out to follow in Philby’s footsteps across the Arabian Peninsula.
Shackleton and the men on Elephant Island: a brotherhood of the sea: in 1916, Ernest Shackleton's beloved ship Endurance was crushed by ice and sank to the depths of the Weddell Sea, but what followed was an astonishing story of courage and survival.
AR6… or should that be AAAAAARRRRRR!?: Mike Robinson reflects on the latest IPCC report in this aptly named blog.
Frank Wild: the call of the ‘white unknown': we mark the 150th anniversary of the birth of Frank Wild, the Yorkshireman who was known as Shackleton’s right-hand man.
