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The Australian Antarctic Territory: Everything below 60°S, between 45°E and 160°E, 1957

Published 4 July 2024 / Last updated 12 July 2024
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Citation Western Australian Museum, The Australian Antarctic Territory: Everything below 60°S, between 45°E and 160°E, 1957 , accessed , <>
Text licence Text content on this page is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
Image licence Unless stated otherwise, images on this page are copyright © Western Australian Museum 2025. Enquire about image reuse >
Published 4 July 2024 / Last updated 12 July 2024
mailEmail link
Citation Western Australian Museum, The Australian Antarctic Territory: Everything below 60°S, between 45°E and 160°E, 1957 , accessed , <>
Text licence Text content on this page is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
Image licence Unless stated otherwise, images on this page are copyright © Western Australian Museum 2025. Enquire about image reuse >
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The Australian Antarctic Territory: Everything below 60°S, between 45°E and 160°E, 1957

Published 4 July 2024 / Last updated 12 July 2024
mailEmail link
Citation Western Australian Museum, The Australian Antarctic Territory: Everything below 60°S, between 45°E and 160°E, 1957 , accessed , <>
Text licence Text content on this page is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
Image licence Unless stated otherwise, images on this page are copyright © Western Australian Museum 2025. Enquire about image reuse >
    Object story

    The Australian Antarctic Territory

    Everything below 60°S, between 45°E and 160°E, 1957

    Did you know Australia claims the largest territory in Antarctica? The Australian Antarctic Territory (AAT) covers nearly 5.9 million square kilometres, approximately 42% of Antarctica’s total landmass and nearly 80% of the size of Australia itself.

    black and white map of claims on Antarctica
    The Australian Antarctic Territory, excluding the French Adelie Land territory. Credit: Map courtesy of Australian Antarctic Data Centre, Commonwealth of Australia 2024
    Antarctica from above
    Antarctica from above. Credit: Image courtesy of Dave Paper, 2002 (using NASA's Blue Marble data)

    The AAT today is home to a network of research stations, including Mawson, Davis, and Casey, which serve as hubs for scientific research in the region. Established in 1954, Mawson was the first Australian station and is the longest continuously operating station on the continent.

    The Davis and Wilkes stations were opened in 1957; the latter was originally an American temporary station that came under Australian control in 1959. It has since been abandoned and replaced by Casey in 1988. Wilkes is now almost permanently frozen, only occasionally visible every four or five years. The abandoned Wilkes Station actually inspired the setting to Western Australian author Matthew Reilly’s 1998 thriller novel, Ice Station.

    Photo of shell of structure partially covered by snow
    The abandoned Wilkes station is only visible after particularly warm seasons when the ice thaws. Credit: Image courtesy of Chris Wilson, Australian Antarctic Data Centre, Commonwealth of Australia 2016

    While seven countries have made territorial claims in Antarctica, not all of them are acknowledged and some overlap, causing friction between claimants. Australia officially laid claim to the AAT after Britain transferred control in 1933. Some scholars have even suggested that the use of postal marks and stamps like the ones here were used to further those claims of sovereignty, as postmarks can only be issued by a sovereign state.

    However, the issue remains contested. In the Antarctic Treaty of 1961, for example, each signing country retains its own stance on recognising (or not recognising) territorial claims made by other countries. So, while Australia's claim is recognised by the UK, New Zealand, France, and Norway, other nations dispute it. In the case of whaling practises in Australian Antarctic waters, the Japanese government’s refusal to acknowledge Australia’s claims, can prove particularly contentious.

    Additional reading
    • Collis, C. (2007). ‘Mawson and Mirnyy Stations: the spatiality of the Australian Antarctic Territory, 1954–61’, Australian Geographer (Volume 38 No.2), pp. 215– 231. < https://doi.org/10.1080/00049180701422407 >, accessed June 2024 
    • Day, D, (2012). Antarctica: A Biography, Random House Publishers 
    • McConville, A, (2022), In search of the last continent: Australia and Early Antarctica Exploration, Australian Scholarly Publishing 
    • Burns, R. (2001), Just tell them I survived: Women in Antarctica, Allen & Unwin Publishers
    Object details
    About

    Registration label from Kellerberrin, blue, rectangular, dated 16 December 1959. 

    Envelope is addressed to 'Miss Dawn Inverarity/37 Monument Street/Mosman Park/Western Australia.' 

    Also attached: Australian Antarctic Territory Emperor Penguins 2s 3d Deep Green; Australian Antarctic Territory 1s Bottle Green; Australian Antarctic Territory 8d Deep Blue; Australian Antarctic Territory First Attainment of Magnetic Pole 5d Blackish Brown postage stamp(s); Black ink postmark from Kellerberrin (Ea31-b type).

    Museum accession number
    H2020.1866
    Type
    Type
    Registration label
    Associated places
    Place
    Kellerberrin
    Dates
    16/12/1959
    Addressed to
    Miss Dawn Inverarity/37 Monument Street/Mosman Park/Western Australia
    Style
    print letters
    Shape
    Shape
    rectangular
    REGISTRATION LABEL
    Label number
    2223.0
    COVER
    Cover media
    First Day Cover
    Cover illustration
    illustrated
    Cover text
    AUSTRALIAN ANTARCTIC TERRITORY/(WILKES, DAVIS, MAWSON & MACQUARIE ISLAND)
    MARKS & STAMPS
    Postage stamp type
    Postage stamp type
    Australian Antarctic Territory Emperor Penguins 2s 3d Deep Green
    Other postage stamp types
    Australian Antarctic Territory 1s Bottle Green; Australian Antarctic Territory 8d Deep Blue; Australian Antarctic Territory First Attainment of Magnetic Pole 5d Blackish Brown
    FRONT MARKS
    Postmark cancellation
    Kellerberrin
    Other marks on front
    violet '16 DEC 1959'
    REVERSE MARKS
    Other marks on reverse
    -
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