Souvenir album with olive wood covers 'Flowers from the Holy Land' : Private H Lawler, 26 Battalion AIF

Small souvenir album with covers fashioned from olive wood with bevelled edges and a centrally mounted inlaid design featuring the word 'Jerusalem' in English and Hebrew, surrounded by a decorative border. The album features a printed title page, entitled 'FLOWERS / FROM THE HOLY LAND / Fleurs de Terre Sainte / Blumen aus dem Heil. Lande / JERUSALEM'; and twelve one-sided pages with a printed caption in Hebrew (at the top of the page) and German, English, French and Russian at the base. Glued to each page is a different pressed flower relating to the region described. Pages are: Jerusalem; Mount Zion; Mount Moriah; Siloa; Mount of Olives; Valley of the Jordan; Tomb of Rachel; Bethlehem; Valley of Jehosaphat; Tiberias; Nazarath. Each page is fitted with a protective tissue insert.

Purchased as a souvenir by 1134 Private Hubert Arthur Lawler, a baker of East Davenport, Tasmania who enlisted on 7 April 1915 aged20, and was assigned to 26 Battalion. After initial training, Lawler embarked for overseas service on 20 June 1915 and trained with his battalion in Egypt before being landed at Gallipoli on 12 September. The battalion was employed in a defensive role at Courtney's and Steel's Post, and at Russell's Top before being evacuated on 12 December, four days after evacuations began. Lawler's battalion remained in Egypt until late April before being shipped to France in preparation for the Somme Offensive. Lawler's first major operation was also his last - he was wounded by shrapnel in his right buttock on 5 August 1916 as 26 Battalion suffered through the attacks on Pozieres. Recovered by members of 4 Field Ambulance, Lawler was transferred to the 5th Southern General Hospital, Portsmouth. Despite the apparent slightness of the injury, Lawler was still in hospital ten months later and the decision was made to return him to Australia. He was discharged on 25 May 1918.