Compass with case of Lt. J. M. Bowman
Compass of WWI issue. 1915 by Koehn in Geneva, Switzerland, pattern No. 20096, brass with glass window in cover. Glass has “crazed” from a sharp blow. Tan leather case with buckle, missing shoulder strap. Initials J. M. B. in black ink on cover on front side; “Lieut J M Bowman 48th Highlanders of Canada” on […]
G. L. Cassaday – baseball hat – red
Red baseball cap with the 48th Highlanders badge
Barb Wire Cork Screw
The 36-inch (99.14 cm) screw pickets, used as supports for barbed wire defences, were introduced c. 1915 as a replacement for timber posts. Crown Iron Works Co. (Minneapolis, MN) made over 10 million of these screw post pickets for WW1, WW2 and the Cuban Missile Crisis. The French name for this type of “steel stake” […]
Trench Periscope
A 3.25 inch (8.26 cm) deep by 4.5 inch (11.43 cm)wide by 13 inch (33.02 cm) high grey wooden box with a 45 degree mirror at either end with a 3 inch (7.62 cm) by 4 inch (10.16 cm) viewing slot on each end. Early trench periscopes were made by installing two mirrors at 45-degree angles […]
Hinged Trench Mirror “Vigilant” WW 1
This 2 inch (5.08 cm) by 3.5 inch (8.89 cm) mirror was designed to be clipped to a bayonet on a rifle. The mirror is hinged to be closed when not in use, as to avoid a gunner’s attention and protect the mirror. If a soldier held the rifle upright above the parapet of a […]
Leather Sporran with 92nd Battalion badge
A 92nd battalion badged leather sporran in brown leather with two tassels and a 92nd Battalion badge, worn with kilt and uniform when out of the trenches. Standard issue by 48th Highlanders. The sporrans are usually brown leather shovel pouches with simple adornment. These “day” sporrans often have three or more leather tassels and frequently […]
Waterproofed Map of Lille, France
A 4.5 inch by 6.75 inch (when folded) waterproofed map of Lille France, sale 1/80000. Lille is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region in northern France, near the border with Belgium. A cultural hub and bustling university city today, it was once an important merchant center of French Flanders, and many Flemish influences remain. The […]
Loos Trench Map 36º NW3
A 4.5 inch by 6.75 inch (when folded) cotton rag map coated with waterproofing of Loos, 36º N W, Edition 9. A, Scale 1: 30,000. A Trench map shows trenches dug for use in war. This article refers mainly to those produced by the British during the Great War, 1914–1918 although other participants made or […]
Gift Box from Princess Mary
A 3 inch by 5 inch gold coloured gift box with an embossed head of Princess Mary. The Princess Mary Gift Fund box is an embossed brass box that originally contained a variety of items such as tobacco and chocolate. It was intended as a Christmas present to those serving at Christmas in 1914 and was paid […]
Ear Defenders
Mallock-Armstrong ear defenders, vulcanite, in tin box circa 1915. The inventors and makers of these ear defenders promised “…ordinary sounds and conversations heard as usual. Gunfire and shell bursts rendered harmless.” The First World War was characterised by the extensive use of heavy artillery and many troops experiencing temporary or permanent deafness caused by the […]