A re-analysis of the supposed role of lead poisoning in Sir John Franklin's last expedition, 1845–1848
@article{Millar2014ARO, title={A re-analysis of the supposed role of lead poisoning in Sir John Franklin's last expedition, 1845–1848}, author={Keith Millar and Adrian W. Bowman and William John Battersby}, journal={Polar Record}, year={2014}, volume={51}, pages={224 - 238} }
ABSTRACT The ‘Franklin expedition’ of 1845 set out to establish a ‘northwest passage’ between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans but ended with the deaths of all 129 crewmen in the grimmest of circumstances. The hypothesis that lead poisoning may have contributed to the disaster is examined by re-analysis of the bone-lead content of seven skeletons in order to model statistically the likely variation in lead burden across the whole crew. Comparison of the estimated lead burdens with present-day…
17 Citations
The health of nine Royal Naval Arctic crews, 1848 to 1854: implications for the lost Franklin Expedition
- HistoryPolar Record
- 2016
On the basis of the squadrons’ patterns of illness it was concluded that Franklin's crews would have suffered common respiratory and gastro-intestinal disorders, injuries and exposure and that deaths might have occurred from respiratory, cardiovascular and tubercular conditions.
Death in the Arctic – the tragic fate of members of the Franklin expedition (1845)
- HistoryForensic Science, Medicine and Pathology
- 2020
In May 1845 HMS Terror and HMS Erebus left England to find the Northwest Passage linking the north Atlantic and Pacific Oceans but despite these modern additions neither the vessels nor any of the 129 crew members would ever return.
The Franklin expedition: What sequential analysis of hair reveals about lead exposure prior to death
- Environmental ScienceJournal of Archaeological Science: Reports
- 2018
A Critical Assessment of the Oral Condition of the Crew of the Franklin Expedition + Supplementary Appendix 1 (See Article Tools)
- History
- 2017
Little is known about the fate of the crew of the Franklin expedition after they sailed from England in 1845. Scant physical evidence and limited Inuit testimony have fueled speculation that the crew…
Skeletal Lead Burden of the British Royal Navy in Colonial Antigua
- Environmental ScienceInternational journal of osteoarchaeology
- 2017
The data suggest that naval personnel, regardless of ancestry at English Harbour, had very similar experiences with regard to Pb exposure, and levels of Ba, Ca and rare earth elements support a largely biogenic origin of lead.
A Case Study: Was Private William Braine of the 1845 Franklin Expedition a Victim of Tuberculosis? + Supplementary Appendix 1 (See Article Tools)
- Medicine
- 2017
A bone sample from one of the Franklin expedition crewmen, Private William Braine, was analyzed for ancient DNA belonging to Mycobacterium tuberculosis and results show that it is unlikely that tuberculosis contributed directly to his death.
Finding the dead: bodies, bones and burials from the 1845 Franklin northwest passage Expedition
- HistoryPolar Record
- 2018
Abstract On 22 April 1848, after three years in the Arctic, and 19 months spent ice-bound in northern Victoria Strait, the 105 surviving officers and crew of the Franklin Northwest Passage expedition…
Use your best endeavours to discover a sheltered and safe harbour
- HistoryPolar Record
- 2019
Abstract On 24 May 1847, Sir John Franklin’s third expedition reported “All well”, but less than a year later, on 22 April 1848, the 129 sailors who had set out from Britain on Erebus and Terror had…
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