The James Caird

This is my version of The James Caird, a small boat that played a huge role in the history of Antarctic exploration.

In 1914, British explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton set off for Antarctica at the head of the Imperial Trans Antarctic Expedition. His aim was to land on the Antarctic coast and then be the first to travel overland via the South Pole to the opposite coast.

Unfortunately his ship, The Endurance, was trapped and then crushed in the ice as they approached the continent. This left the 28-man expedition stranded on the remote and uninhabited Elephant Island with many of the men suffering from frostbite. As their supplies began running low, and with no way of contacting the outside world, Shackleton and 5 of the crew set off on an 800 mile journey across some of the world’s stormiest seas in the James Caird, a 22ft lifeboat, to get help from a whaling station on South Georgia.

Before setting off, they did their best to modify the open topped boat by fitting it with masts/sails, adding rocks as ballast and making a deck out of packing cases waterproofed with oil paints and seal blood!

After 17 days battling mountainous seas, they finally reached South Georgia and a rescue mission was launched to recover the rest of the men. Incredibly, not a single member of Endurance's crew was lost! The skill of the 6 men and the toughness of the James Caird itself have made this one of the greatest small boat journeys of all time.

The James Caird was eventually brought back to Britain and can now be seen in display at Dulwich College.

I've been interested in Antarctic exploration and Shackleton's exploits in particular for many years and this is one of several MOCs I've been working on recently relating to this theme.

The build is based on images and details of the real vessel that I've found online. It is roughly minifig scale and has brickbuilt sails which can be positioned at different angles or removed completely. It has an open cockpit with space for 2 minifigs and an interior which features parts to represent the supplies they carried (including a Primus stove), as well as space for a minifig to rest/sleep. This interior can be accessed by removing the deck for play, or either side of the hull to create a "cutaway effect".

It also includes 2 minifigs with a variety of accessories (the actual crew would have been 6: one to helm the boat, one to handle the sails, one to bail and 3 resting). Finally, a simple base makes it a nice display piece which I think would appeal to those interested in ships or the history of exploration.

Anyway, thank you for taking the time to view my submission and please consider giving it your support.

Cheers!