Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2013L01343:reg:16:p31
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2013L01343
Segment Type: reg
Provision Reference: reg 16 (pt 31/51)
Character Range: 289037–291804

in the Antarctic environment resulted in an expedition hut form suitable for polar regions.
Mawson's Huts were built in January, February and March 1912 and May 1913. In their surviving form and setting the huts illustrate the isolation and harsh environment of Cape Denison. They also demonstrate the cramped internal conditions endured by expedition members. The living quarters in the Main Hut, for example, a single space measuring 7.3m x 7.3m, provided sleeping and kitchen facilities for 18 men.
The external form and internal structure of the largest hut, the Main Hut, are a simple but strong architectural concept: a square base topped by a pyramid roof (to prevent damage by blizzards), with skylights to provide natural lighting. Following the decision to combine two expedition bases into one, a hip-roofed accommodation hut measuring 5.5m x 4.9m was adjoined to the living quarters and equipped as a workshop. A 1.5m wide verandah surrounded the structure on three sides, under the same roof. The verandah was used as a storage space that also assisted in insulating the hut from the weather.
The two huts that form the Main Hut were built of Oregon timber frames clad with Baltic pine tongue-and-groove boards. They were prefabricated in Australia, and on-site construction was assisted by a branded letter code on framing members and coded colours painted on board ends. (None of the expedition party had any previous construction experience). The survival of the Main Hut at one of the windiest sites on Earth is testimony to the strength of its design and care of its construction.
Mawson's Huts contain numerous significant and relatively untouched artefacts from the 'heroic age', which form a rich resource of material available for research and interpretation, and potentially yielding information about aspects of expeditioner life not included in official written accounts.
The three other AAE huts are:
    * The Absolute Magnetic Hut, constructed during February 1912. It measured 1.8m x 1.8m in plan with a skillion roof and had an Oregon timber frame to which boards of remnant timber were fixed. The hut was used in association with, and as a reference point for, observations made in the Magnetograph House. Today it is considered to be a standing ruin.
    * The Magnetograph House was erected in March 1912 to house equipment used to measure variations in the South Magnetic Pole. It measures 5.5m x 2m with a shallow pitched skillion roof and no windows. After the first building attempt was demolished by high winds, large rocks were heaped against the new hut to provide a wind barrier. Sheepskin and hessian attached to the roof also assisted in keeping the internal temperature constant and in minimising the ingress of drift snow.