| Accession Number | P11027.010.001 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | |
| Maker |
Aarons, Daniel Sidney |
| Place made | Belgium: Flanders, West-Vlaanderen, Messines |
| Date made | 1917 |
| Conflict |
First World War, 1914-1918 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Captain (Capt) Ernest "The Doc" Spargo, a doctor with the Australian Army Medical Corps (AAMC) ...
Description
Captain (Capt) Ernest "The Doc" Spargo, a doctor with the Australian Army Medical Corps (AAMC) enlisted on 20 April 1916 and embarked from Melbourne aboard HMAT Port Lincoln on 20 October 1916. In March 1917 he was posted to the 16th Battalion. Capt Spargo is modelling a German Army body armour made by Krupp which had recently been found amongst dead German soldiers. The armour was made of cotton, felt and four steel plates which protected the chest, lower abdomen and groin. The armour was mainly used by machine gun crews and those such as sentries who were on duty in exposed positions. The weight of the armour precluded its wear for extensive periods, or by active troops, but it provided the wearer with immunity from most Allied small arms fire at moderate ranges.