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What Would You Wear on an Arctic Expedition?

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Try on different types of clothing to see how garments worn on the lost Franklin Expedition measured up to traditional Inuit kamiks.

Would you know how to dress for an Arctic expedition? Would you rather wear a cotton shirt and a knitted coat with buttons, or sealskin and caribou-skin mittens? Try on reproductions of what the men of the Franklin Expedition were wearing when they disappeared in 1845, and compare them to traditional Inuit clothing. Hold and feel a replica of a European-style leather shoe from the exhibition Death in the Ice – The Mystery of the Franklin Expedition and think about how far you would get on snow and ice wearing similar footwear.

Find out how traditional Inuit knowledge influenced the equipment and clothing choices of Parks Canada archaeologists searching for the wrecks of Franklin’s ships, HMS Erebus and HMS Terror.

This activity for adults and children ages 8 and up is a hands-on opportunity to learn about Inuit culture and methods of survival.

Grand Hall (March 3 and 4) and Haida Gwaii Mezzanine (March 5 to 18)

Image: The Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, University of Toronto

Dates & Times
English French
Saturday, March 3, 2018
11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Sunday, March 4, 2018
11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.