Mantel clock : Chief Petty Officer Stoker W E R Whitehead, Royal Navy

Mantel clock in a brown wooden case. The clock face is of white enamel with Roman numerals, and has an hour and minute hand. The blank central section of the face has been painted in oils with a representation of the Rock of Gibraltar. Beneath, in ink, is 'SOUVENIR DE GIBRALTER [sic]'. The face is protected by a circle of glass within a hinged white metal frame, which opens to allow the clock to be wound up. A large metal winding key with a wooden knob for a handle is included with the clock.

The body of this clock is said to have been taken from the wardroom of the British battlecruiser HMS Repulse when she was decommissioned and sold in July 1911. The round clock is a standard naval issue one and would originally have been bolted to a bulkhead. The painted image of Gibraltar and the wooden mantle case are later additions. It is associated with the service of Chief Petty Officer William Edward Richard 'Popeye' Whitehead. Whitehead was born in Maidstone, Kent in 1889, and entered the Royal Navy on 19 March 1908, where he specialised as a stoker. In 1916 he was promoted to Chief Stoker. In June 1922 Whitehead left the Royal Navy and transferred to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), leaving his wife and three small children behind in England. In Australia he reverted to the rate of Able Seaman and was assigned the service number 404. He travelled to England in 1925 and returned with his wife and children in 1926. Whitehead had no seagoing postings during his service with the RAN and was posted to various shore establishments in Victoria. He was an expert on fuel quality and in 1936 he was selected as caretaker of the Oil Fuel Installation at Newport, Victoria. His ability was always assessed as superior and he was eventually was awarded three good conduct stripes. In April 1942 he was again promoted to Chief Petty Officer Stoker. Whitehead was discharged on 21 December 1945.