Antarctic expedition lace panel

 

This panel was made in 1957 to commemorate the Commonwealth Trans Antarctic expedition, which took place over the years 1957 and 1958 and was led by Sir Vivian Fuchs and Sir Edmund Hilary. During the expedition Fuchs became the first person to make an overland crossing of Antarctica, which entailed covering 2200 miles in 99 days.

The lace was made in cotton thread on a Nottingham curtain lace machine by the Stiebel ad Co lace company based in the city. It was designed by John Belton and depicts the aurora australis (the Southern lights) over the sea and snowy landscape of Antarctica with explorers, equipment and penguins. The panel is often known as the Magga Dan panel after the name of the expedition ship, which is also shown in the scene. As well as its interesting subject matter the panel is also unusual because it has been hand coloured with dyes and stencils to highlight the Southern lights and other aspects of the design, to give the scene a more three-dimensional appearance.