Divers Recover Over 350 Artifacts From The Disastrous HMS ‘Erebus’ Shipwreck

Divers spent approximately 110 hours underwater exploring the wreckage and carefully collecting artifacts that would now help experts understand what life was like on two ships that sailed to their doom.

It was in 1845, under Sir John Franklin, when HMS Erebus and HMS Terror set sail from Greenhithe, England, in an attempt to find a sea route that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean through the Arctic Ocean. Sir John Franklin, who was in command of the expedition, sailed in Erebus while Irish officer Francis Crozier sailed in Terror with a total crew of 130 men. Termed as the Franklin Expedition, the ships traveled over 4,100 miles to King William Island in Canada where they, unfortunately, became icebound.

Sealing wax made of a mix of shellac and turpentine, with vermilion and chalk, was among the artifacts recovered last year from the Erebus wreck site. (Underwater archeology team/Parks Canada)

Sir John Franklin died in 1847 and a year later Crozier too passed away, leaving their crew frazzled and starved. According to previous studies the crew, who abandoned the ship and tried trekking overland to get help, all died from hypothermia, scurvy, and starvation. However, some forensic evidence confirms that due to poor canned rations some of the crew members resorted to cannibalism to stay alive. Well, we’ll never know for sure, or will we?

A decanter or eau de toilette bottle was found on the lower deck of Erebus in August 2019. (Underwater archeology team/Parks Canada)

Franklin Expedition was long forgotten until 2014 when HMS Erebus was discovered followed by HMS Terror in 2016. Experts now had a chance to understand what life was like on the ships and, possibly, uncover secrets of the wreckage. In August and September of 2019, for three weeks, divers from Parks Canada’s underwater archaeology team spent approximately 110 hours underwater to explore and pull out artifacts from the doomed HMS Erebus.

A hairbrush discovered at the HMS Erebus shipwreck still had a few human hairs in the bristles. PARKS CANADA’S UNDERWATER ARCHAEOLOGY TEAM

Divers were able to pull out a lieutenant uniform’s epaulets, ceramic dishes, a hairbrush with human hair, a pencil set, a toothbrush, a shoe, a formal quill, silver spoon and sugar cube tongs, a bottle of mustard, an accordion, wine bottles and a wax seal with a fingerprint, among other things. However finding, exploring and collecting the artifacts came with its own set of challenges for the team of dedicated divers. Although the cold temperature did a great job preserving artifacts, it placed extra stress on diving equipment as well as put the team at risk of hypothermia, strong currents, and volatile weather.

Nevertheless, Parks Canada’s manager, Marc-André Bernier stated that the archaeology team was more than happy to face the difficulties in order to learn more about the mysteries surrounding the lives of the missing sailors. Experts hope that after further exploration of the two ships, they’ll be able to understand how they sank, why they were 45 miles apart when they sank, and who was on board before the ships were abandoned.

What is your theory about the Franklin Expedition? How do you think the ships sank? Let us know in the comments below. Don’t forget to share this article with your friends!