Poster offering a reward to whalers for assisting in the search for the Franklin Expedition

Sir John Franklin led a British naval expedition to discover the North West Passage in 1845. By 1847 nothing had been heard of the expedition and concerns began to grow. Search expeditions were sent after them by the Admiralty, and Sir John's wife, Lady Franklin, campaigned tirelessly for further searches, funding some of them herself.

This poster offers a reward of up to £3,000 (worth over £240,000 in 2019) to any whaling vessels who go out of their normal waters to try and find the expedition.