Sir John Franklin's failed arctic expedition has become the
archetypal survival horror story: in 1847 two of the most
technologically-advanced and well-equipped ships of their day
sailed into the polar wilderness in search of the North Passage.
They were never seen again, leaving a trail of scattered graves and
suggestions by the native Induits that the crew had resorted to
cannibalism. It was only in 1981 that a group of scientists were
able to identify why the mission went so wrong, through the
discovery of three startlingly well-preserved bodies. This modern
classic of forensic anthropology (a historical 'howdunnit') is so
pleasurable thanks to its recounting of the scientists' own
expedition. They outline the tools and techniques by which they
came to their hypothesis in language plain enough for the most
casual novice, alongside gory photographs, maps and Victorian
artwork. A new foreword by Margaret Atwood attests the cultural
influence of the book since its original publication in 1987.
(Kirkus UK)
The Franklin expedition was not alone in suffering early and
unexplained deaths. Indeed, both Back (1837) and Ross (1849)
suffered early onset of unaccountable "debility" aboard ship and
Ross suffered greater fatalities during his single winter in the
Arctic than did Franklin during his first. Both expeditions were
forced to retreat because of the rapacious illness that stalked
their ships. Frozen in Time makes the case that this illness
(starting with the Back expedition) was due to the crews'
overwhelming reliance on a new technology, namely tinned foods.
This not only exposed the seamen to lead, an insidious poison - as
has been demonstrated in Franklin's case by Dr. Beattie's research
- but it also left them vulnerable to scurvy, the ancient scourge
of seafarers which had been thought to have been largely cured in
the early years of the nineteenth century. Fully revised, Frozen in
Time will update the research outlined in the original edition, and
will introduce independent confirmation of Dr. Beattie's lead
hypothesis, along with corroboration of his discovery of physical
evidence for both scurvy and cannibalism. In addition, the book
includes a new introduction written by Margaret Atwood, who has
long been fascinated by the role of the Franklin Expedition in
Canada's literary conscience, and has made a pilgrimage to the site
of the Franklin Expedition graves on Beechey Island.
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