Penguins are a feature of Antarctic life.

Outside Discovery Point Dundee stand four penguin statues. The road is just behind here so not all the Discovery Point Museum building is in shot.

View from Museum. The new Dundee Railway Station building is across the road behind the penguins:-

Watercolour of “Penguins at Cape Crozier” painted by a member of the Discovery Expedition, Edward Wilson:-

As is the ships’s harmonium – also good for keeping up morale I should think. It’s behind glass so difficult to photograph. Its cast iron pedals say “mouse-proof” on them.

Brass struts:-

Salt boxes. The salt absorbed any water that entered between the inner and outer hull and between the frames, so helping preserve the timber:-

Panting beams plaque. These beams go from one side of the ship to the other, preventing the ship’s hull from flexing when under way and helped in resisting crushing by the ice:-

Equipment room:-

Store room:-

Gangway:-

Science cabin:-

Root of main mast:-

Mizzen mast:-

Chart room:-

Office:-

Engines:-

Plaque for the engines’ builders, Gourlay Brothers & Co Ltd:-

Due to the need for hull strength to withstand the crushing forces of the Antarctic ice, the RRS Discovery had no portholes. Instead internal illumination and ventilation were made possible by the use of mushroom vents in the deck. The crew nicknamed these ankle crushers as they presented obstacles to easy movement.

Mushroom vents:-

This deck structure also contains “portholes” pointing skywards:-

Steering wheel and binnacles:-

To the right above you can see the plaques denoting the location of the steering wheel, the binnacles and the ship’s cuddies.

Shipbuilders plaque. Dundee Shipbuilders, Panmure Yard:-

See previous posts on RRS Discovery here and here.

RRS Discovery Wardroom. Fairly sumptuously appointed:-

By contrast here’s the Mess room. The ‘men’ lived and slept here, in hammocks:-

Galley:-

Junior Officer’s Quarters. A grade or so up from the ‘men’ you’ll note:-

These do look reasonably comfortable – but they were apparently the coldest part of the ship and the mattresses could freeze under the sleeping officer:-

Senior Officer’s quarters, a bit less spartan:-

Shackleton’s Quarters weren’t quite so plush:-

Scott’s, though, seem very salubrious:-

In the Discovery Point Museum at Dundee are many fascinating exhibits. These few photos feature some about the ship itself.

Model of RRS Discovery:-

Cut away showing engines:-

Cut away showing hull construction and its reinforcing:-

Hull construction illustration. Three different woods, Green Heart Pitch Pine, English Oak and Riga Fir, build for strength and flexibility:-

RRS Discovery was Scott’s and Shackleton’s research ship in the Antarctic, now berthed at Dundee, centrepiece of a museum at Discovery Point, Dundee. New V&A in background:-

RRS Discovery viewed from left:-

RRS Discovery, bow section:-

Stern portion. Again V&A in background:-

Main mast:-

Mast and lifeboat:-

There is some modern architecture in Liverpool, especially the Museum of Liverpool, situated down towards the Mersey.

Museum (centre left) from Albert Dock:-

From plaza:-

Closer view:-

A very Chinese looking construction across a street entrance in Liverpool:-

A bit more traditional. Decorative tiles on a city centre building:-

The new branch of the V&A Museum in Dundee, a museum of Scottish design and its impact on and from the world, opened to visitors today.

As we quite often visit or pass through Dundee this is a building I have seen growing from the waterfront over the past few years and it is a splendid piece of architecture.

It lies beside Discovery Point, latest (and last?) home of Scott’s and Shackleton’s research ship the RRS Discovery. There are hopes the V&A will do for Dundee in terms of tourism and raising the city’s profile what the Guggenheim did for Bilbao.

It’s exciting to think I’ll be able to visit it soon. We’re not going straight away as we expect it will be fairly busy. I believe entrance has to be booked for the first few weeks.

These photos were taken in February when the building was pretty well completed on the outside. We had been round the Discovery – itself well worth a visit – and the opportunity to take the photographs couldn’t be missed.

RRS Discovery and V&A Dundee:-

Part of the V&A looks like the prow of a ship. V&A from the stern of RSS Discovery (Tay Road Bridge in background):-

Stern sprit of RSS Discovery, V&A in background:-

In other aspects it resembles a cliff, the architect Kengo Kuma‘s inspiration. V&A from RRS Discovery:-

From plaza:-

From east northeast:-

The inside exhibits promise to be as distinctive as the outside.