A scale replica of Endurance, the ship used by Ernest Shackleton for one of his expeditions to Antarctica, arrived in Athy, Co Kildare, ahead of the town's Ernest Shackleton Autumn School later this month.
The replica, which was used extensively in the making of Shackleton, the Channel 4 drama series starring Kenneth Branagh, had to be resurrected after the programme's re-enactment of the final moments of the Endurance, which went down in Antarctica in November, 1915.
The ship is 15 feet long, 11 feet high and five feet wide - around one-tenth of the original size of the Endurance. It was donated to the the Athy Heritage Centre by First Sight Films, which produced the series and refurbished by the centre at a cost of €15,800.
Several other pieces of Shackleton memorabilia have also been secured. A large number of letters and photographs were recently purchased from Christie's auction house in London, including correspondence between the wife of the Athy-born explorer and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Edmund Gosse and King George V and Queen Alexandra. The photographs include several unpublished snapshots of Shackleton on the ships, Discovery, Nimrod and Endurance, together with some personal family pictures.
The acquisition of these items has been described as a major coup for the heritage centre in Athy and is seen as a huge boost to its permanent Shackleton exhibition. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that the letters and photographs will arrive at the centre in time for the autumn school.
However, an extended exhibition, due to be launched next year, will feature the newly acquired items.
Athy Heritage Centre manager Ms Margaret O'Riordan said: "It was an opportunity that we felt we could not turn down and we are delighted that it has now taken a permanent position in our Shackleton exhibition. . .We got a good bargain."
This is the second year that the Ernest Shackleton Autumn School is being held in the town (October 24th-27th). Apart from the exhibition, there will be lectures on the themes of Shackleton, and exploration in general, together with a diverse arts programme in various venues around the town. A highlight of the weekend will come on Saturday night, October 25th, with the premiere of Endurance, a 15-minute piece composed and performed by uilleann piper Liam O'Flynn.
There will also be a dramatisation of the life of Kerryman Tom Crean, who accompanied both Shackleton and Scott to the Antarctic. The weekend will be officially opened by the explorer's granddaughter, the Hon Alexandra Shackleton.