Two German officers with a captured British Army Mark II female tank. This tank's serial number ...

Two German officers with a captured British Army Mark II female tank. This tank's serial number 586 is visible on the rear of the left hand side. The tank is from British unit No. 11 Company, D Battalion, commanded by Lieutenant Clarkson, and took part in the Battle of Bullecourt on 11 April 1917. Although some sources claim this tank had penetrated as far as Riencourt and Hendecourt, it is now known to have been disabled near the German trench lines and left behind on the battlefield. This image, copied from a German photographic postcard and taken soon after the battle, shows the significant shell damage sustained by the front of the tank. The sponson is camouflaged in a splinter pattern. Some sources indicate that a number of MkII tanks fitted with MkI sponsons were used in the attack. Cleats for improving traction over mud had been fitted to the tracks. One of a series of 62 photographs acquired by C.E.W. Bean from a number of sources in the 1920s. None were taken by Bean, but acquired to augment his own photographs. All were registered in his personal (C.B.) series and carry a C.B. number. All were subsequently registered in the AWM G Series under one accession number, G01534, and use a series of alphabetic extensions, commencing with G01534A, to accommodate the 62 items.