Historial Arctic Food Find
Famous Arctic Explorer’s Tinned Meat Found After 81 Years
Franklin Relic
A tin of meat was found 81 years after being abandoned by the famous arctic explorer, Sir John Franklin of Spilsby in 1845.
The tin, which was found on a sledge abandoned by the ill-fated Franklin party, was found to contain boiled beef in mutton fat after being opened and analysed in the Liverpool City Laboratories by bacteriologist, Prof Beattie in 1926.
The beef appeared to be in good condition.
Beattie made a careful analysis of the contents of the tin feeding it to a number of caged rats and monitoring the results.
The effect on the rats was said to have been of great scientific interest.
Update: A few years ago it was discovered that the tins used in the Franklin expedition had a high content of lead which probably contributed to the death of the explorers. Read more…
So perhaps the eventual fate of Beattie’s rats is a foregone conclusion!
Leave a Reply