SCOTT, Robert Falcon. Portrait photograph on skis, Antarctic expedition, 1912. 

Original black-and-white press photograph depicting Captain Robert Falcon Scott equipped for polar travel, standing on skis with poles, dressed in full cold-weather expedition gear. The image presents Scott in the field during the British Antarctic Expedition (Terra Nova, 1910–1913), the ill-fated journey that culminated in his reaching the South Pole in January 1912, shortly after Roald Amundsen. Good overall, with strong, clear image, 175 x 130mm.

Provenance: Brown Brothers Archive

A striking and iconic image of Robert Falcon Scott, one of the defining figures of the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration, captured in full expedition dress and equipment. The photograph conveys both the physical demands and the stark isolation of polar travel, with Scott posed against a minimal, snowbound landscape—an enduring visual shorthand for early twentieth-century exploration.

The verso bears Culver Pictures Inc., New York agency labels and printed identification, confirming its later press usage and identifying Scott (1868–1912) and his historic South Pole expedition. While not a period expedition print, such early press photographs—drawn from original negatives or archive sources—remain highly collectible, particularly when presenting clear, well-composed images of Scott in situ.

Scott’s legacy, shaped by both heroic endeavour and tragic outcome, continues to resonate strongly with collectors of exploration, maritime history, and British imperial history. Photographs showing him actively engaged in expedition life—rather than formal studio portraits—are especially desirable.

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