Mallory's Kit Better Than You Think

A two-year long project to create replicas of the climbing gear worn on the 1924 Everest Expedition reached fruition today with the unveiling of the clothing at an outdoor clothing conference held at Rheged.

Mallory's Boots - better than you might think.

The project began in 2001 when artefacts found with George Mallory's body on Everest in 1999 were transferred to the National Mountaineering Exhibition at Rheged in Cumbria. Experts from four universities with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Pasold Research Fund Ltd cooperated to produce exact replicas of Mallory's clothing, which can be tested to assess its effectiveness and performance.

The team expect to be able to disprove the myth that George Mallory was climbing Everest dressed poorly for the elements. Dave Brook from the University of Leeds, an expert in analysing textile performance, tested the materials thoroughly and revealed results showing that we could learn from the past.

It was no easy task however, team member Vanessa Anderson comments:

"This project involved a lot of detective work to piece together the past. I used historical sources to determine how these garments were constructed and tracked down suppliers who could recreate the fabrics for me- in many cases, the original suppliers such as Burberry, who wove the cotton gabardine for the jacket, and Smedleys of Matlock, who produced a replica wool-silk vest.

"What impressed me is the strength and quality of the materials they used and how well they were tailored to withstand conditions on Everest."

The four universities involved in the project were Lancaster, Southampton, Leeds and Derby, where Vanessa Anderson, who reconstructed the garments as the research project for her MA in Performance Sportswear Design. The testing of the finished garments was done by the Performance Clothing Research Centre at Leeds University's School of Textiles.

We'll be bringing you a firsthand report from the Clothing for Extremes Conference in the near future.