What others said about Joseph van Waterschoot van der Gracht, Dutch explorer, balloon commander, geologist, penguin enthusiast and painter on Douglas Mawsonâ s Australasian Antarctic Expedition 1912-1913:

â He is a highly skilled geologist, and also an artist and photographer of exceptional ability.â â David Orme Masson, a member of the AAE Advisory Committee

â â ¦ a very fine fellowâ ¦â â John George Hunter, Main Base, Australasian Antarctic Expedition

â â ¦ I have written to Prof. Masson suggesting that Mr. Van der Gracht, a very clever Dutch geologist, should be taken on the trip when you go down to fetch Mawson.â â Sir Ernest Shackleton

â Mawson regarded him as a con-man and did not like his paintings.â â David Francis Branagan, Associate Professor of Geology, Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Sydney