Neville_C
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Posts posted by Neville_C
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Hello David,
I have seen four of these. "P. of L.T.S." stands for "Piece of Long Tom Shell". Similar Maltese crosses were produced for the Armoured Train Disater, stamped with the initials "A.T.D." and "FRERE 15.11.99".
One I have in my collection is named to a "G.E. NAYLOR V.D.G" [5th Dragoon Guards]. Oddly, Naylor joined and fought through the ABW with an assumed name: "Alfred Blackburn".
Hope this helps,
Neville
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LADYSMITH SIEGE MEDAL : What IS this ??? Have YOU seen this before?? Please help !!!!!
in Great Britain: Empire: Colonial Including South Africa & India: Awards, Militaria & History
Posted · Edited by Neville_C
BTW, it is highly unlikely that these crosses were actually made from shell fragments. To take a huge lump of 6-inch shell, hammer it into thin sheets, and then cut these into crosses ..... Far too labour-intensive, I would have thought. I am not aware of any part of a Creusot shell that would have already had these characteristics.
Some of the napkin rings purporting to be made from copper driving-bands are similarly dubious. In some instances the spacings of the cannelures and rifling-grooves do not match those of any known projectiles/ordnance of the period. An engineer by the name of Gerrans produced such items in his workshop in Mafeking. His keenness to obtain souvenirs ended in disaster when a shell exploded on his workbench, killing a passer-by and injuring himself and his foreman (the latter losing a foot). However, this did not put a stop to Gerrans's antics as, in 1902, he converted a Long Tom shell into a clock to be presented to Joe Chamberlain when he visited the town that year.