King Charles has sent a special Royal Mail post box to scientists in the Antarctic just in time for Christmas.
Station support assistant, Kirsten Shaw, who runs the British Antarctic Territory Post Office at Rothera Research Station, wrote to the monarch asking for a replacement for the base’s previous hand-painted replica box.
The Royal Household was “touched by the story of the team working in one of the most remote places on earth” and joined up with Royal Mail to organise a gift.
They sent one of its famous red lamppost boxes, featuring the King’s cypher, the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) said.
The Royal Household was ‘touched by the story of the team working in one of the most remote places on earth’
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The post box was delivered by the UK’s polar research vessel RRS Sir David Attenborough, along with the first major drop of supplies to the base following the continent’s long, dark winter.
Station leader at Rothera, Aurelia Reichardt, described the present as “having a piece of home with us”.
She said: “It’s such an honour for the station to be gifted a real Royal Mail post box.
“It’s given the community here a real boost – and it’s a great reminder to take the time to reach out to loved ones, even when work gets hectic.”
The letterbox features the King’s cypher
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The station leader continued: “For our team, who are working in such a remote place, it’s like having a piece of home with us.”
Earlier this year, the monarch recorded a personal message for researchers in Antarctica, discussing the “greatest admiration for the critically important work you do”.
Ms Shaw was awarded the Fuchs Medal in 2022 for her outstanding devotion to the Antarctic community, thanks to her postal work.
The mail is sent on the RRS Sir David Attenborough or via BAS aircraft to an office in Stanley on the Falkland Islands, before being transported on an “air bridge” route to RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, ready to be picked up by Royal Mail.
Station leader at Rothera, Aurelia Reichardt, described the present as ‘having a piece of home with us’
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David Gold, Royal Mail’s director of external affairs and policy, said sending and receiving post at Rothera was “vital” to keeping those working there connected with family and friends at Christmas.
He said: “Sending and receiving mail is a vital connection for staff working in one of the most remote places on Earth – especially at Christmas, when messages from loved ones mean so much.
“This new post box will help keep that tradition alive and ensure the magic of mail even reaches the Antarctic.”
Rothera is home to around 100 staff in the summer months and just 22 in the winter, from April to mid-October.
The King said in an earlier message this year that he has the ‘greatest admiration for the critically important work’ the people do in Antarctica
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GETTYAdelie penguins are also found living there, with pictures released by the BAS showing the birds strolling near the new post box.
Rothera, located hundreds of miles south of the Falkland Islands on Adelaide Island, west of the Antarctic Peninsula, serves as a centre for biological research and supports deep-field and air operations.
Lamppost boxes are the Royal Mail’s smallest and were originally designed to be fixed to lampposts.
The box will eventually be located in the Discovery Building, the station’s new 4,500m-squared modern scientific support and operations centre.