Arsenal arrive in Indonesia on Friday for the first leg of the 2013 Asia Tour.
Before they packed, six of the travelling party got prepared for their trip by donning traditional batiks for a very special photoshoot.
These distinctive shirts originate in Indonesia and have become an important national symbol.
The players showcase the special Arsenal batiks
Tomas Rosicky, Olivier Giroud, Mikel Arteta, Lukas Podolski, Per Mertesacker and Wojciech Szczesny wore two designs displaying different crests to demonstrate the changing face of Arsenal Football Club.
They were specially-made in Indonesia and shipped to England ahead of the tour.
Lukas liked his so much he asked to keep it but we are giving the others away via competitions for our Twitter followers.
* Followers of @Arsenal can win the one worn by Szczesny.
* Followers of our Indonesian Twitter feed, @OfficialAFC_ID can win the batiks worn by Rosicky, Giroud, Arteta and Mertesacker.
Make sure you follow those accounts if you want to have a chance of winning the players’ batiks.
Lukas Podolski liked his so much he decided to keep it
Facts about Batik
Batik is a cloth traditionally made by drawing or painting on cloth with hot wax, which is then immersed in wax-resistant dye, leaving the designs intact
Batik has been found as far as Egypt, Senegal, Nigeria and Azerbaijan
Certain patterns of Batik can only be worn by royalty or nobility. One can determine royal lineage and rank simply by looking at the cloth
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation designated Indonesian Batik as a Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in October 2009
Once this was established, the Indonesian government encouraged both government and private company employees to wear Batik on Fridays
Historically, Batik is essential for ceremonial costumes, and in the 1960s the batik shirt was invented as a formal non-Western shirt for men
It is acceptable for Indonesian men to wear batik shirts in the office or as a replacement for jacket-and-tie at certain receptions
The price for a Batik shirt can range from several dollars for manufactured shirts, up to several thousand dollars for hand drawn silk batik which can take months to make
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