The box of cocoa tins and a Shell motor spirits box is an unlikely pairing, but one of Antarctic significance.
The items, which were both crucial supplies on the expeditions during the heroic age of Antarctic exploration, are now in the hands of the Antarctic Heritage Trust in Christchurch, thanks to former United States naval captain Dave Baker.
"With the Antarctic Treaty now in place and the excellent work of the trust caring for these expedition bases, I was comfortable in returning the items knowing that they will be preserved for posterity,” said Baker.
Trust conservation collections manager Lizzie Meek said it is always an exciting day when items are returned to the organisation.
"We know there are still some artefacts out there that were collected from Antarctica during some of the early 1940s-60s missions ... We always welcome their return, and have a careful process for ensuring they are conserved and then located back to the expedition bases,” she said.
It was when trapped outside in a storm in Antarctica during his voluntary service in 1956 that Baker’s story crossed paths with those of Shackleton and Scott.
Baker had volunteered to become a member of a rescue team (naval parachutists, 30 dogs and three dog handlers) to be stationed at McMurdo Base from December 1955-57.
"Our team made a trip across the sea ice from McMurdo to Cape Evans. It was intended to be an overnight trip, returning to the navy’s base at Hut Point the following day,” said Baker.
However, the wind picked up, forcing the team to hunker down in their tents.
On day three, Baker and his teammates decided to investigate the interior of Scott’s Hut "partly out of curiosity and because they might have to shelter there if the storm continued much longer".
They pried open a window to catch a glimpse into a moment frozen in time.
"Below and in front of me was a long table. It appeared to have been recently used, as there were cups, some with frozen cocoa in them.
"Someone unfamiliar with the hut’s history might have assumed that the occupants had stepped out to return any minute,” he said.
Baker and his rescue team, deeming the hut a "sacred space", left the scene as they found it.
However, while looking for food stores outside the hut, Baker found the case of Fry’s cocoa and a wooden box, labelled "Shell Motor Spirits & Scott’s Antarctic Expedition 1910".
Baker was inspired to return the artefacts to the Antarctic Heritage Trust.
"They belong to Captain Scott, Sir Ernest Shackleton and polar history, so they needed to go home,” he said.
Over the last 60 years he has used them as exhibits in lectures, speaking to tens of thousands of people, sharing his Antarctic experience with people.
The artefacts will travel back to Scott’s Antarctic hut at Cape Evans with the trust’s conservation team who return this season for their annual monitoring and maintenance programme.
