Turkish beadwork money pouch : Captain F M Mack, 1 Light Horse Regiment, AIF

Rust red cotton-crocheted beaded money pouch decorated with light and dark blue looped tassel glass bead work. The overall form is of a tube, closed at the apex with a pair of triangular flaps and a draw string.

Crochetted glass bead purse taken from the body of an unknown dead Ottoman Turk soldier during a ceasefire armistice to bury the dead (probably the one occuring on 24 May 1915 after the disastrous and costly Turkish attack of 19 May), by Sergeant Frank Murgha Mack of 1st Light Horse Regiment (1 LHR), AIF. During the attack of 19 May, 1 LHR were holding and defending positions at Pope's Hill. They were relieved by 3 LHR at 2:30 that afternoon and retired to bivouac positions in Monash Valley, but were on alert to defend the 'inner line of defence' for the next few days. On the declaration of the Armistice, which lasted from 7:30 am until 4:30 pm on 24 May, 1 LHR created a 'Local Reserve to Pope's Post' to assist with the operation. The Battalion War Diary noted 'from 50 to 100 dead in front of Pope's Post' that had to be removed and buried. Seven Turkish coins were contained in this pouch and are held in the currency collection.

477 Private Frank Murga Mack, 1 Light Horse Regiment, was born in 1877 in Melbourne, Victoria. When he enlisted on 27 August 1914, he was a grazier from Narromine, NSW. Mack was made Sergeant (Provisional) on 1 September 1914 and embarked on A16 HMAT 'Star of Victoria' on 20 October 1914 from Sydney. He served at Gallipoli and was promoted to Sergeant on 22 February 1915, then 2nd Lieutenant on 11 August 1915, and was further made a Lieutenant on 28 November 1915.

After his service on Gallipoli, he remained in the Middle East serving in the Sinai and Palestine with his regiment and was promoted to Captain on 16 February 1917. A military memorandum from 8 February 1919 refering to Mack states 'is fitted for promotion - has a good eye for country and is a good officer in the field or any duty of a practical nature'. Throughout his service in the Middle East, Mack suffered from successive illnesses and was finally discharged on medical grounds on 23 June 1919.

Crochet beadwork was, and still is, commonly encountered in Turkish and Balkan decorative arts, and can be found adorning scarves, clothing and tableware, and used as necklaces, purses and protective covers for objects such as bottles, watches and cigarette lighters. The crocheted tube is a common form, as it is easy to construct, and it is this style that forms the basis of this particular purse. The tiny glass beads forming the body of the pouch are known as 'seed beads' due to their small size.