Eyebolt shackle

An unprovenanced relic of Sir John Franklin's 1845 Arctic expedition. It may have been obtained by the Schwatka expedition from Inuit on the Hayes River and is likely to be an eyebolt shackle. There is a Royal Naval Museum, Greenwich number (1) painted on in white. It may have come from the vessel that sank near the shore at Grant Point. Schwatka was told by the Inuit of the Adelaide Peninsula that they had found the ship abandoned except for the body of a European. The Inuit removed anything useful and the vessel subsequently sank. They also reported finding the footprints of the four last crew members on the shore. The most likely entry in the Royal Naval Museum, MSS 1913 catalogue, is Franklin Room case 6, number 1 'Some native tools etc from the Ookosiksillik Eskimos at Hayes River, and made of parts belonging to H.M.S. 'Erebus ' and 'Terror''.

Object Details

ID: AAA2373
Collection: Polar Equipment and Relics
Type: Eyebolt shackle
Display location: Not on display
Creator: Unknown
Events: Arctic Exploration: Franklin's Last Expedition, 1845-1848; Arctic Exploration: Franklin Search Expedition, Schwatka, 1878-1880
Date made: Before 1845
Credit: National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London.
Measurements: Overall: 44 x 118 x 53 mm