World leading industrial thread and consumer textile crafts business, Coats plc has a new neighbour – Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.  In December 2012 it was announced, during a historic visit to Downing Street by the Queen, that part of Antarctica had been named Queen Elizabeth II Land as a Diamond Jubilee gift from the Foreign Office.

The previously unnamed area, which is twice the size of the UK and described as a strange and beautiful landscape of towering mountains and infinite ice, borders Coats Land – the region named after the Coats brothers who funded the first Scottish research expedition to the earth’s southernmost continent in 1902.

To commemorate the naming of Queen Elizabeth II Land and mark Her Majesty’s Jubilee year, Coats has created a two by three metre knitted British flag designed by Rowan Head Designer Marie Wallin using Rowan Purelife British Sheep Breeds yarns.

Rowan is a strong supporter of the Campaign for Wool and Love Wool UK. The Campaign for Wool is a global community of sheep farmers, retailers, designers and manufacturers, united by patron His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales.

The Campaign for Wool aims to educate as many people as possible about the benefits and versatility of using wool in fashion, furnishings and everyday life; supporting many small businesses and local farmers whose livelihoods depend on the wool industry.

Coats Land

It’s over a hundred years since the discovery of Coats Land was made in the Antarctic, funded primarily by Major Andrew Coats and his younger brother James Jnr. from the famous Paisley thread manufacturing family.  They provided over £30,000 of the £36,405 raised to finance the venture and were staunch supporters of the expedition, also providing a great number of Fair Isle jerseys, caps, gloves, scarves and stockings which added a splash of colour to the Antarctic scene long before they became fashion items.

Paul Forman, Group Chief Executive, Coats plc, said: ‘Coats Land was named in recognition of the generosity and dedication of the Coats family to Scotland’s polar expeditions.  The Rowan flag created to commemorate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee year is a fitting tribute and showcases the timeless luxury of the Rowan brand and the best of British wool.’

To download a high resolution image of the Rowan British flag go to: www.coats.com/imagelibrary

To find out more about Coats Land in Antarctica and the 1902 expedition go to: www.coats.com/coatsstories

ENDS