Relics are mostly found at coastal sites, where the sealers worked and lived, and include a variety of items such as stone platforms, hut ruins, iron melting pots, oil barrels and grave sites.
Surveys of sealing era material have been undertaken as a means of gaining further insight into the activities and lifestyle of those living on the island in the early years following its discovery.
Cultural heritage – ANARE
Beneath the imposing grandeur of Big Ben, the Australian National Antarctic Research Expedition (ANARE) established its first base at Atlas Cove on 11 December 1947. The station was closed down in March 1955, following the establishment of Mawson on the Antarctic continent in 1954. During its nine years of occupation, ninety-one expeditioners wintered on Heard Island.
The station initially comprised 18 buildings, separated from each other due to fear of fire. By 1950, the first huts specifically designed for the conditions had been developed. By 1951, the station had increased dramatically in size to 35 buildings. There were five different types of prefabricated buildings and several traditional framed buildings. Many were constructed from WWII surplus materials.
Aside from building foundations, some machinery and scattered artefacts, there is little remaining. Adjacent to the station site, surrounded by cushion plant vegetation on Azorella Peninsula, there is a cross that commemorates the deaths in 1952 of 2 ANARE personnel, Richard Hoseason and Alistair Forbes.
Further information about historical uses of Heard Island may be found on the National Heritage List and the archived Register of the National Estate listing for Heard Island and McDonald Islands.