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Shackleton's Argonauts: The Epic Tale of Shackleton's Voyage to Antarctica in 1915
- GenresHistory
184 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1948
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34 people want to read
About the author
Frank Hurley
39 books6 followersCaptain James Francis (Frank) Hurley (1885-1962) was an adventurer and photographer.
At the beginning of Hurley's career, the explorer Douglas Mawson "took a chance on the confident young man. And so did Kodak. Hurley, whose postcard business was suffering through a recession, was in debt to a local branch of Kodak. The Kodak manager provided photographic equipment, and Hurley went off on the Mawson expedition in 1911."(Kodak: Biography of Frank Hurley).
Before World War I, Hurley would make six trips to the Antarctic with early famed explorers creating some of the most renowned images of polar exploration and survival.
Lionel Greenstreet, First Officer of the Endurance, said of him: “Hurley is a warrior with his camera & would go anywhere or do anything to get a picture.”
In 1917, Hurley became an Australian Imperial Force (AIF) official photographer with the honorary rank of captain. He served with fellow Australian film-maker/photographer Hubert Wilkins under Charles Bean in the Australian War Records Section documenting the indescribable carnage and condition of the trenches.
Hurley's task was purportedly to take propaganda photos that would help promote the war effort, Wilkins' was to gather a documentary record of men and events but the two traveled together and both took great risks on the battlefield. Hurley would photograph the war in France (including the Third Battle of Ypres aka Passchendaele), as well as later in Palestine and Cairo.
He married Antoinette Leighton April 11th, 1918 then returned to London to work on an exhibition of Australian war photography.
After the war he made trips to the Antarctic, and to the Torres Strait Strait and New Guinea. He flew with Ross Smith, the legendary fighter ace he knew from the Palestinian Theatre. He returned to Europe on several occasions and visited the United States.
During the 1930s Hurley worked in Sydney for Cinesound, then in 1940, Hurley resumed war photography with the AIF in the Middle East where he would remain til 1946.
On January 16, 1962, "at the age of 76, he came home from an assignment lugging his battered old camera case. He sat down and, uncharacteristically, said he did not feel well. He sat there all night and died next day." (Kodak: Biography of Frank Hurley).
At the beginning of Hurley's career, the explorer Douglas Mawson "took a chance on the confident young man. And so did Kodak. Hurley, whose postcard business was suffering through a recession, was in debt to a local branch of Kodak. The Kodak manager provided photographic equipment, and Hurley went off on the Mawson expedition in 1911."(Kodak: Biography of Frank Hurley).
Before World War I, Hurley would make six trips to the Antarctic with early famed explorers creating some of the most renowned images of polar exploration and survival.
Lionel Greenstreet, First Officer of the Endurance, said of him: “Hurley is a warrior with his camera & would go anywhere or do anything to get a picture.”
In 1917, Hurley became an Australian Imperial Force (AIF) official photographer with the honorary rank of captain. He served with fellow Australian film-maker/photographer Hubert Wilkins under Charles Bean in the Australian War Records Section documenting the indescribable carnage and condition of the trenches.
Hurley's task was purportedly to take propaganda photos that would help promote the war effort, Wilkins' was to gather a documentary record of men and events but the two traveled together and both took great risks on the battlefield. Hurley would photograph the war in France (including the Third Battle of Ypres aka Passchendaele), as well as later in Palestine and Cairo.
He married Antoinette Leighton April 11th, 1918 then returned to London to work on an exhibition of Australian war photography.
After the war he made trips to the Antarctic, and to the Torres Strait Strait and New Guinea. He flew with Ross Smith, the legendary fighter ace he knew from the Palestinian Theatre. He returned to Europe on several occasions and visited the United States.
During the 1930s Hurley worked in Sydney for Cinesound, then in 1940, Hurley resumed war photography with the AIF in the Middle East where he would remain til 1946.
On January 16, 1962, "at the age of 76, he came home from an assignment lugging his battered old camera case. He sat down and, uncharacteristically, said he did not feel well. He sat there all night and died next day." (Kodak: Biography of Frank Hurley).
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 10, 2023
Frank Hurley was invited to join Shackleton's Antarctic expedition after his success as photographer on Mawson's expedition. Financiers recognised the potential to make big money from excellent film and photographs of the expedition. It was the financiers who insisted that Shackleton secure Frank Hurley on this trip.
Armed with a cinematograph machine and a plate camera, as well a several small hand held cameras, Hurley set about cataloguing the departure from Buenos Aires, where he was to meet the expedition, and the journey to South Georgia and the time they spent in the Whaling stations there.
It was a time when whaling was a poplar enterprise, and Hurley' description of the sea and shore around the stations was disgusting, and even then there was talk that the numbers of whales in the area were low and the whalers were travelling further and further to find whales. There was no negative connotations around the practice however, as the world hadn't yet recognised the impact on whale numbers.
And so, off they set for Antarctica on Endurance a, story well known. When the ship becomes trapped in ice they had not achieved the dropping of the shore party - something that probably helped their survival, as they had the manpower to achieve the salvage of boats, stores and materials; they had all the dog teams and sleds etc.
Anyone having previously read the excellent book by Alfred Lansing's Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage, will already have a very good understanding of how the story plays out. What Hurley's book offers here is more of a look at the experiences on Elephant Island while Shackleton and the sailors set off for South Georgia, 750 miles away, in the James Caird to secure a rescue. While the men initially had hopes of a rescue within 4-5 weeks of Shackleton's departure, it soon became apparent that they would need to winter over, once again. Hurley, with Frank Wild was one of the leaders on Elephant Island.
Of course, Hurley had to abandon most of this photographs. Of the 400 glass plates he had before the Endurance was trapped in ice, Hurley and Shackleton selected 120 to keep. These along with the hand held film camera made up the sole photographs of the expedition. Some of the best are shared in this book - the most well known of which is a study of the Endurance by flashlight, sitting high above an ice crest, hull and rigging encrusted with rime-crystals. Such a ghostly image, with the ship white on a black background. Another poignant photo is taken by Hurley, standing back with the Elephant Island men in the foreground, facing the distant boat, waving their arms in joy as the log awaited rescue is made.
An excellent book, which deserved more reading than is evident on this site.
5 stars
Armed with a cinematograph machine and a plate camera, as well a several small hand held cameras, Hurley set about cataloguing the departure from Buenos Aires, where he was to meet the expedition, and the journey to South Georgia and the time they spent in the Whaling stations there.
It was a time when whaling was a poplar enterprise, and Hurley' description of the sea and shore around the stations was disgusting, and even then there was talk that the numbers of whales in the area were low and the whalers were travelling further and further to find whales. There was no negative connotations around the practice however, as the world hadn't yet recognised the impact on whale numbers.
And so, off they set for Antarctica on Endurance a, story well known. When the ship becomes trapped in ice they had not achieved the dropping of the shore party - something that probably helped their survival, as they had the manpower to achieve the salvage of boats, stores and materials; they had all the dog teams and sleds etc.
Anyone having previously read the excellent book by Alfred Lansing's Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage, will already have a very good understanding of how the story plays out. What Hurley's book offers here is more of a look at the experiences on Elephant Island while Shackleton and the sailors set off for South Georgia, 750 miles away, in the James Caird to secure a rescue. While the men initially had hopes of a rescue within 4-5 weeks of Shackleton's departure, it soon became apparent that they would need to winter over, once again. Hurley, with Frank Wild was one of the leaders on Elephant Island.
Of course, Hurley had to abandon most of this photographs. Of the 400 glass plates he had before the Endurance was trapped in ice, Hurley and Shackleton selected 120 to keep. These along with the hand held film camera made up the sole photographs of the expedition. Some of the best are shared in this book - the most well known of which is a study of the Endurance by flashlight, sitting high above an ice crest, hull and rigging encrusted with rime-crystals. Such a ghostly image, with the ship white on a black background. Another poignant photo is taken by Hurley, standing back with the Elephant Island men in the foreground, facing the distant boat, waving their arms in joy as the log awaited rescue is made.
An excellent book, which deserved more reading than is evident on this site.
5 stars
July 15, 2023
The language is dated and slightly purple but what a tale! How the expedition members survived their ordeal is something fiction could not match. Highly recommended for anyone interested in Antarctic exploration or how the will to live can overcome adversity.
April 20, 2019
Hurley was known as one of the preeminent photographers and cinematographers of his generation, perhaps even of all time. What I didn't know was that he writes as well as he photographed. The prose is simply stunning, the descriptions of Antarctica beyond compare. And what a story,probably the greatest tale of adventure, survival and rescue ever! Gripping and Mesmerizing.
On a side note, reading this made me realise what a different world Hurley lived in 100 years ago; a world where he viewed Antarctica as ripe for development and advocated strongly for Australia developing a whaling industry. Some things have changed for the better :-)
On a side note, reading this made me realise what a different world Hurley lived in 100 years ago; a world where he viewed Antarctica as ripe for development and advocated strongly for Australia developing a whaling industry. Some things have changed for the better :-)
August 16, 2021
The story of Ernest Shackleton's expedition to Antarctica in 1915 through the lens of his photographer, Frank Hurley. A great read!
November 22, 2025
An eminently readable and entertaining account of the Endurance expedition through the eyes (and camera) of the photographer/cinematographer. I particularly enjoyed Hurley’s account of his trip with Norwegian whalers when the Endurance was stopped at South Georgia. His descriptions of the dogs, as well as several expositions on Shackleton and Wild’s leadership, were very touching. Hurley does not fail to mention the times when he was afraid or depressed. I have to give him credit for admitting that there was a fight on Elephant Island, and he was one of the two men involved. Graciously, he does not name the other man. The book concludes with many of Hurley’s fine photographs from the expedition. How can you not feel emotional to see the men on Elephant Island realize that they have been saved? What an extraordinary moment to catch on camera.
In this book, Hurley does not give himself much credit. His photography work is self-evident. But he was truly a jack of all trades. He assisted the cook and scientists, trained and drove a dog team, and built and/or installed various devices that greatly improved quality of life for man and beast. When the party moved onto the ice, Hurley hunted seals and penguins that were required for food. He designed and built the stove out of parts salvaged from the ships. Perhaps he exaggerates his importance? Anyway, all surviving accounts mention that Hurley was game for any required activity.
For more on Hurley and the Endurance expedition, read his diary, which has been transcribed and is available online: https://www.shackletonsway.com/_files.... I found it more illuminating and engaging than his book.
In this book, Hurley does not give himself much credit. His photography work is self-evident. But he was truly a jack of all trades. He assisted the cook and scientists, trained and drove a dog team, and built and/or installed various devices that greatly improved quality of life for man and beast. When the party moved onto the ice, Hurley hunted seals and penguins that were required for food. He designed and built the stove out of parts salvaged from the ships. Perhaps he exaggerates his importance? Anyway, all surviving accounts mention that Hurley was game for any required activity.
For more on Hurley and the Endurance expedition, read his diary, which has been transcribed and is available online: https://www.shackletonsway.com/_files.... I found it more illuminating and engaging than his book.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews