So Far, So Close. Approaching Experience in the Study of the Encounter Between Sealers and the South Shetland Islands (Antarctica, Nineteenth Century)

Abstract

In the beginning of the nineteenth century, sealing vessels representing the interests of capitalist companies ventured beyond the edge of the known world. Their goal was to find new sources of oil and skins for supplying the international market. It was in this context that sealers first arrived at the South Shetland Islands. Without a doubt, the “encounter” between the hunters and the archipelago (a region previously unknown) could have presented challenges and opened up new experiences. However, and at least until now, most historical and archaeological research on the subject has underestimated the role of bodily, sensory, and affective experience. In this chapter we try to understand why; furthermore, we present an alternative and experimental proposal to integrate experience in our own research project.