Sealers towing pelts to the ship, n.d

The commercial spring seal hunt was one of Newfoundland and Labrador's most dangerous and demanding industries in the 19th century. Those who participated in it had to work in the hazardous and inhospitable conditions of the North Atlantic ice fields. Sealers spent up to 12 consecutive hours on the ice, often walking long distances across unstable ice pans.

Photographer unknown. Reproduced by permission of the Archives and Manuscripts Division (Coll. 137 25.01.010), Queen Elizabeth II Library, Memorial University, St. John's, NL.