Led by our Collections team, we offer a number of opportunities to learn more about and see highlights of the Society’s unique Collections.
Coming up:
Workshops and showcases
"Thrilled to experience the most professional and in-depth presentation."
"Lovely to handle the original documents. Opens up a whole new dimension... a chance to interact and learn from documents and primary sources."
When: All events begin at 2.30pm. Meet at the Exhibition Road reception. Booking essential, as places are limited. Book early to avoid disappointment. Refreshments provided.
Tickets: Free to members and educational users, non-members £5 payable in advance.
To book a place:
Telephone +44 (0)20 7591 3044 or 
email showcase@rgs.org
How to use the Foyle Reading Room workshop
- Monday 30 January 2012
- Monday 6 February 2012
- Monday 13 February 2012
- Monday 20 February 2012
An excellent hands-on introduction to the Foyle Reading Room, showing users how to get the best out of the Society's Collections.
Antarctic exploration
- Monday 5 March 2012
- Monday 12 March 2012
A return of this popular showcase covering the planning, execution and aftermath of the early 20th century Antarctic expeditions of Scott, Shackleton and Amundsen. Contents will include the South PolarTimes, the ‘inhouse magazine’produced by Scott and hismen during his first expedition.
Sir Clements Markham and polar exploration
- Monday 9 January 2012
- Monday 16 January 2012
This showcase explores the pivotal role of Markham in the expansion of geographical knowledge of the Polar Regions from his days as a midshipman in the Arctic to his planning of the first British Antarctic expedition. Items on display will include his private diaries, artefacts and manuscript mapping.
Lecture-related Collections displays in the Foyle Reading Room
Pre- or post-Monday night lecture why not visit the Foyle Reading Room to see lecture-themed Collections displays on the following dates, pre-lecture from 5.30pm to 6.30pm and post-lecture from 7.30pm to 8.30pm.
- The rediscovery of Machu Picchu (photographs by Hiram Bingham) - 30 January 2012
- Religion for atheists (items related to ritual and pilgrimage) - 6 February 2012
- Madagascar's spiny forest (Map and Atlas representations of Madagascar) - 26 March 2012
Be Inspired
A series of afternoon talks based on the Society’s Collections, from 2.30pm to approximately 4pm.
This series of Collections-specific, regular afternoon talks is given by speakers who have used the Collections to inspire their writing, travel or personal researches. It is intended to inspire members and non-members alike to use our rich resources for their own projects.
Tickets: free to RGS-IBG members and educational users. Non-members: £5, payable in advance.
Venue: Education Centre, Lowther Lodge. Pre-booking required.
To book a place:
Telephone +44 (0)20 7591 3044 or email showcase@rgs.org
The lost photographs of Captain Scott
David Wilson
Join David M. Wilson, the great-nephew of the Chief of the Scientific Staff, Dr. Edward Wilson, who died with Captain Scott and his fellow explorers, as he explores Scott’s own breathtaking photographs.
The Great White Silence
Jan Faull, British Film Institute (BFI)
- Monday 26 March 2012 at 2.30pm
The images that Herbert Ponting captured as photographer and cinematographer on the Terra Nova expedition have fired imaginations.The BFI has restored his remarkable filmto show the world of the expedition in brilliant detail.Venue: Ondaatje Theatre.
Robert Byron: His Life and Times
James Knox
James talks about Robert Byron whose book The Road to Oxiana has been described as the greatest pre-war travel book and the first example of great travel writing.
Patrick Leigh Fermor: An Appreciation Alexander Maitland, FRGS
- Monday 31 October 2011 Postponed - now takes place Monday 12 December 2011
The emergence of Inlandsis
Jean de Pomereu
150 years ago, the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets were cartographic voids that resided outside of our knowledge and vision – all scientists could do was imagine. Using the RGS-IBG archives as his primary source, Jean de Pomereau looks at how these blanks on the map have since been explored, scanned, drilled, photographed from space, and how their future is now being predicted.
Find out more about our Be Inspired talk 'The emergence of Inlandsis (PDF)'.
Collections On View events
Linked to selected exhibitions at the Society, these browsing displays (2.30pm to 4pm) include rare books, maps, photographs, images, artefacts and archival material relating to the subject of an exhibition. Located in the Society's Foyle Reading Room, many items on display are unique to the Society's Collections.
Free to RGS-IBG members, non-members £5. To book, telephone 020 7591 3044 or email showcase@rgs.org