Trench art tea bell : Lance Corporal T E Anderson, 7 Sanitary Section, Anzac Mounted Division, AIF

Place Middle East: Ottoman Empire, Palestine
Accession Number REL/10306
Collection type Heraldry
Object type Trench Art
Physical description Brass, Copper
Maker Anderson, Thomas Edward
Place made Ottoman Empire: Palestine
Date made 1917
Conflict First World War, 1914-1918
Description

Trench art souvenir tea bell with a brass body cut from a shell case, a beaten copper handle made from the driving band of a shell, and a clapper made from a .303 Mk VI calibre projectile. The lower edge of the shell is cut in a rounded crenellated pattern, as seen in some Middle Eastern architecture and is hand engraved 'COO-EE'. The upper body of the shell is hand engraved with a spray of wattle, two sprays of Australian Christmas bells and 'PALESTINE 1917'. There are also two unidentified engraved words, possibly in a form of Arabic lettering.

History / Summary

This bell was made in 1917 by 16887 Private Thomas Edward Anderson during his service in Palestine. Anderson enlisted in the AIF in Sydney on 5 July 1916 and after training with the Medical Corps left Australia for Egypt in January 1917 aboard the troopship HMAT A42 Boorara. He served initially with the Australian Camel Brigade Field Ambulance but transferred to 7th Sanitary Section Anzac Mounted Division in September 1917. Anderson was promoted to lance corporal in July 1918 and returned to Australia in March 1919.