Beginning with Carsten Borchgrevink's first winter in 1899 at Cape Adare and finishing with Shackleton's second expedition in 1917, there were five expeditions in total, with Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton each leading two.
The surviving huts house roughly 15,000 relics and comprise of an array of sledging gear, dog and pony tack, cooking utensils, sleeping bags, scientific equipment and, above all, a large number of canned and bottled foodstuffs.
ICS has been involved in assessing and cataloguing these collections since 1996, with regular visits to the huts. Between 2002-2004, ICS contributed to the Ross Sea Artefact Conservation Programme. Such a programme had never been undertaken before. It involved the planning and development of the long-term management, care, display and maintenance of the artefacts. In the winter of 2006, a six-year-long conservation the project began.
