A Stunning & Rare 5th Royal Irish Lancers Tchapka Helmet Plate

In superb condition, fabulous bronze patina and two helmet screw posts. Battle honours up to the Boer War. King Edward VIIth's crown. The regiment was originally formed in 1689 as James Wynne's Regiment of Dragoons. They fought in the Battle of the Boyne and at the Battle of Aughrim under William of Orange. Renamed the Royal Dragoons of Ireland, they went on to serve with the Duke of Marlborough during the Spanish War of Succession and earned three battle honours there.In 1751, they were retitled 5th Regiment of Dragoons and in 1756 the 5th (or Royal Irish) Regiment of Dragoons. As such, they served in Ireland and were active during the Irish Rebellion of 1798. However, they were accused of treachery; their accusers claimed their ranks had been infiltrated by rebels. (According to Continental Magazine, April 1863, the unit refused to attack a group of rebels.) This accusation appears to have been false, but nevertheless they were disbanded at Chatham in 1799. The regiment was reformed in 1858, keeping its old number and title, but losing precedence, being ranked after the 17th Lancers. It was immediately converted into a lancer regiment and titled 5th (or Royal Irish) Regiment of Dragoons (Lancers). In 1861, it was renamed the 5th (or Royal Irish) Lancers and then the 5th (Royal Irish) Lancers. The regiment served in India and a section served in Egypt in 1885, taking part in the battles at Suakin. It served with distinction in the Second Boer War from 1899 to 1902, gaining battle honours at Battle of Elandslaagte and The Defence of Ladysmith.

The regiment then returned to England where it stayed until the outbreak of World War I, when it became part of the British Expeditionary Force and saw action continually from 1914 to 1918 in some of the war's bloodiest battles. During the battle of Bourlon Wood George William Burdett Clare received the Victoria Cross posthumously. The 5th (Royal Irish) Lancers won a total of 20 battle honours during the Great War.

The 5th (Royal Irish) Lancers also has the grim honour of being the regiment of the last British soldier to die in the Great War. This was Private George Edwin Ellison from Leeds, who was killed by a sniper as the regiment advanced into Mons a short time before the armistice came into effect.

The regiment was renamed 5th Royal Irish Lancers and disbanded in 1921, but a squadron was reconstituted in 1922 and immediately amalgamated with the 16th The Queen's Lancers to become the 16th/5th Lancers The Royal Irish Lancers were in Mons at the time of retreat in 1914 but escaped and returned on Armistice Day. The last cavalry regiment out and the first back!. The memorial panel we show in the gallery records the return welcomed by the Maire and the Cur?. The scene is taken from a painting, ?5th Lancers, Re-entry into Mons?, last heard of in the private collection of a Belgian citizen. This in turn is almost a mirror image of a painting ?5th Lancers, Retreat from Mons? (whereabouts unknown). In the former, the troopers are heading in the opposite direction to the ?Retreat?, and a middle-aged priest and a pregnant woman watching the departure of the regiment among a worried-looking crowd of Belgian citizens have subtly changed: the priest is now white-haired and the mother holds up her four-year-old child, having lived through the occupation of the German forces in Mons for four years. The Great War 1914

The 5 Lancers, as part of the 3rd Cavalry Brigade, were heavily involved and played a major role in the initial mobile actions fought by the BEF. They gained the distinction of being the last cavalry regiment to withdraw from Mons during the retreat; they also had the privilege to be the first British regiment to re-enter Mons after the pursuit in November 1918. Generally the First World War is described as a war of trench deadlock primarily fought by the infantry, gunners and engineers, this assessment is correct. It must however be remembered that cavalry regiments were expected to take their place in the line from time to time and did share the privations of trench warfare suffered by the infantry. On a number of occasions 5 L particularly distinguished themselves: in the defence of Guillemont Farm, June 1917, 3 MCs, and 4 MMs were won and during the defence of Bourlon Wood in 1918 Private George Clare won a posthumous VC. While the main focus of the First World War remained with the armies fighting on the western front it was by no means the only theatre of war. In 1918 Allenby, a 5th Lancer and later a Field Marshal, reorganised British forces in the Middle East pushing his lines forward into northern Palestine. Allenby's Army broke through at Megiddo resulting in the collapse of Turkish resistance. 8.25 inches x 5 inches approx.  read more

Code: 18746

A Good & Scarce, Victorian, 12th Lancers Helmet Plate With Battle Honours

In patinated brass. With two screw posts. With it's Victorian, pre Boer War battle honours; Egypt, Salamanca, Peninsula, Waterloo, South Africa 1851-2-3, Sevastopol, Central India. The regiment of dragoons that was to become the 12th Royal Lancers was raised by Brigadier-General Phineas Bowles in Berkshire in July 1715 against the threat of the Jacobite rebellion. In 1718 the regiment was placed on the Irish establishment and posted to Ireland, where it remained for seventy-five years.

In 1751 the regiment was officially styled the 12th Dragoons. In 1768 King George III bestowed the title of The 12th (Prince of Wales's) Regiment of (Light) Dragoons, the regiment was given the badge of the three ostrich feathers, and the motto "Ich Dien". The 12th Dragoons, led by General Sir John Doyle won their first battle honour in Egypt in 1801 against the French Dromedary corps.[3] They had previously had a young Duke of Wellington serve with them as a subaltern between 1789?91. In 1816, the 12th Light Dragoons were armed with lances after the cavalry of Napoleon's Army had shown their effectiveness at Waterloo and were re-titled 12th (The Prince of Wales's) Regiment of (Light) Dragoons (Lancers). In 1855 they reinforced the Light Cavalry Brigade in the Crimea after the Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaclava. In 1861, they were renamed 12th (The Prince of Wales's) Royal Regiment of Lancers. Between 1899 - 1902 they fought in the South African War, taking part in the Relief of Kimberley and Diamond Hill, the last battle of the war.  read more

Code: 18669

A Superbly Attractive Native American Trade Style Tomahawk Axe, Typical Import Pattern With Trade Stamp

With studded wooden haft, the axe with single curved blade and rounded opposing pole [hammer]. Probably 19th century or later. The metal trade tomahawk has long been an object of fascination for both the amateur collector and the ethnologist. Few other implements have ever combined so many different
functions: tool, weapon, sceptre, symbol and smoking pipe. In this one instrument is collected the lore of handicraft, warfare, prestige, ceremony and personal comfort. Captain John Smith is beheved to have been the first to bring the word into English in his brief vocabulary of Indian terms prepared sometime during the years 1607-1609, when he defined tomahaks simply as meaning "axes." Later he added that the term was applied to both the native war club and the iron hatchet. Almost from the moment the Native American Indian first saw the metal hatchet or tomahawk, likely made in Sheffield, England, he coveted it, and sought to possess one for himself. The efficiency of the new implement was readily apparent : it was deadlier in combat, more efficient in cutting wood, and just as useful as a ceremonial object. Although it was an excellent weapon, the new American man was not as reluctant to trade it as he was to dispense guns. The axe was also self-sufficient; it could function without such components as powder and ball that had to be obtained from the traders. Thus the hatchet could and did spread rapidly through Indian trade routes far from the points of frontiersman’s contact, reaching tribes and areas as yet unknown to the few Europeans along the coast. The first contact of the Indian with the iron or steel axe undoubtedly occurred with the arrival of the Vikings, and to judge from accounts in the sagas, the meetings were not auspicious. Two instances are recounted which may well be the first recorded encounters of the Indian with the weapon which later was to become almost synonymous with his warfare. The Saga of Eric the Red recalls the first reported battle of the Vikings with the natives of America

“The Skrellings [Indians], moreover, found a dead man, and an axe lay beside him. One of their number picked up the axe and struck at a tree with it, and one after another [they tested it] and it seemed to them to be a treasure, and to cut well; then one of their number seized it, and hewed at a stone with it so that the axe broke, whereat they concluded that it could be of no use, since it would not withstand stone, and they cast it away.”

But not all Indians thought the same.


The potentialities of the axe as a weapon were apparent to the Indian from the outset. Garcilaso de la Vega tells of a bloody fight between an Indian armed with a captured battle axe and several of De Soto's soldiers, in which he even includes a i6th century version of the old story of a man being cut in two so quickly by a keen blade that he remains standing and has time to pronounce a benediction before falling. In Florida, Jacques LeMoyne illustrated the murder of a colonist by an Indian with an axe during the brief French settlement at Fort Caroline, 1564-1565. By the early 17 th century the tomahawk was firmly established in the minds of the white settlers as the Indians' primary weapon, and was much more feared than the bow and arrow. Even after the Indians had obtained a sizeable number of firearms, the tomahawk retained its popularity and importance. Once a gun had been fired, it was useless until it could be reloaded ; an edged weapon was needed as a supplement, and this was the tomahawk. Moreover, for surprise attacks and raids, a firearm was frequently out of the question. This axe’s trade stamp could be a weight mark, or even a quantity mark. Lists of trade goods and treaty gifts indicate that the axe, hatchet, or tomahawk were among the most desired objects. As many as a quantity of 300 axes might be handed out at one treaty meeting, and Sir Wilham Johnson estimated that the Northern Indian Department needed 10,000 axes for trade purposes in the year 1765 alone. This is a 19th century trade axe.
Head 7.5 inches, x 3.25 inches length 20.5 inches. We cannot ship this item to the US.  read more

Code: 23386

German WW2 Combat Engineer's Short Wire Cutter's

Combat Pioneer personnel, (Engineers), were issued assorted specialized equipment designed to meet their needs as the spearhead troops tasked with destroying enemy obstacles and creating forward defensive positions for their own troops in the face of the enemy. Each Division in the German Army and the Waffen-SS, (Armed-SS), had an organic Pionier, (Combat Engineer), battalion that consisted of personnel specially trained in destroying enemy obstacles, creating forward defensive positions, bridging and assault tactics.
As the spearhead troops the Engineers were issued with assorted specialized equipment including assault packs, pick axes, saws, long handle shovels, wire cutters, explosive tool kits and other construction and demolition equipment. The Combat Engineer's equipment also included a wide variety of assorted demolition charges, anti-personnel and anti-vehicles mines along with the appropriate detonators, igniters and timers. The Combat Engineers were utilized two, different models of wire cutters enabling personnel to cut through barbwire entanglements. The wire cutters came in both a short and a long model and both were issue with a specific carrying case that was to be worn on the load carrying waist belt.  read more

Code: 23360

A Good Antique Meiji Period Japanese Sword Stick 'Shikome Zue' In Bamboo

This is an antique Japanese sword stick called a shikomi-zue [hidden sword]. In the 1870's the Meiji Emperor disbanded the fuedal samurai order and banned the wearing of the sword. This created much unrest between the samurai and the government and some samurai moved to carrying shikome-zue hidden sword. Therefore, via a circuitous route, they still remain armed, but with their sword hidden from view. But by that way they felt, least in part, their honour remained intact. With a long and powerful blade. In ninjutsu shikomizue became quite popular, as it provided the night warriors with what they needed most – versatility, secrecy and mortality. The walking sticks were popular among all the classes and carrying it caused no suspicion. Combined with the impersonation skills, shikomizue was really a dangerous weapon attacking the enemy most suddenly. This is a good robust example, and would have been highly effective in its day. The blade is a long thrusting and parrying blade, without a dominant edge. The stick is fully bamboo with a bamboo root-ball handle. We show an 1817 Japanese print by Hokusai of his depiction of an all black clad warrior [so called ninja] climbing a rope, with what appears to be his shikome-zue hidden sword stick. Some shikome-zue have early smith made antique adapted blades from swords, this is a standard sword blade that was custom made for this cane when it was created in the 19th century. Overall grey steel with areas of pitting. 34.75 inches long overall, blade 28.25 inches This sword stick is also shown in the Japanese section item 23479  read more

Code: 24172

A Very Fine Late 16th century Italian Morion Cabasset Helmet

An Elizabethan Helmet of the Spanish Armada Period Circa 1570
An armour cabasset helmet from the era of the unsuccessful Spanish 'Armada', the attempted invasion of England, during the Reign of Queen Elizabeth Ist. Used continually through the English Civil War and into the reign of King James. A fine one piece high peak cabasset helmet made in the mid to late 16th century. Wonderfully hand forged with hammer marks and with patches of delamination. This super helmet is nicely constructed with good edgework and lovely quality throughout, and it is a fine period piece in excellent condition for age. This form of helmet that survive today in England were often captured from the Spanish Armada armouries, and some even recovered from the sea bed alongside Spanish cannon, beneath the stricken Spanish ships, and subsequently issued to the London Trayned Bands. There is a picture in the gallery of the same form of helmet [heavily rusted] recovered from Jamestown, the early American colony fort. The History of the Cittie of London Trayned Bandes

(1572-1647)



In the absence of a regular army, the trained bands, founded in 1572 as part of Elizabeth I's efforts to modernise the militia, were the only permanent military units in England. While the county bands were often poorly organised, ineptly officered and infrequently trained, the London bands were not, although enthusiasm did wax and wane considerably over the years of their existence (1572 - 1647).



The Regiments

Before the Civil War there were four London regiments - the North, South, East and West - comprising a total of 6,000 men in 20 companies. In 1642, as relations between king & parliament worsened, the bands were re-organised into 40 companies of 8,000 men in six regiments named the Red, Blue, Green, White, Orange and Yellow after the colour of their regimental flags, or "trophies", as they were known to London militiamen. The following year, after the King's unsuccessful attempt to seize The Capital, three more trained band and five "auxiliary" regiments were raised bringing the whole force to around 20,000 men. This large army, controlled by the mayor and the city aldermen, held London for parliament throughout the first Civil War (1642 - 1646) and contributed brigades of foot to parliament's field armies. The establishment and subsequent rise of the New Model Army after 1645 greatly reduced the significance of the bands and they gradually melted away. Today, only the Honourable Artillery Company, a ceremonial unit of ex-soldiers, remains as a legacy of the glory days of London citizen?s solders. Weapons & Equipment

Weapons and equipment conformed to statute laid down by the Privy Council. The following description is from the 1638 issue of "Directions for Musters".



The Pikeman

"Must be armed with a pike seventeen feet long, head and all; the diameter of the staff to be one inch 3/4, the head to be well steeled, 8 inches long, broad, strong and sword-pointed; the cheeks 2 foot long, well riveted; the butt end bound with a ring of iron, a gorget, back, breast, tassets and head piece, a good sword of 3 foot long, cutting and stiff pointed with girdle and hangers".
The Musketeer
"Must be armed with a good musket, the barrel four foot long, the bore of 12 bullets in the pound rowling in, a rest, bandolier, head-piece, a good sword, girdle and hangers".
One other picture is a period engraving of an Elizabethan soldier with his pear stalk cabasset, another picture of The Battle of Gravelines, August 8, 1588, which is of the defeat of the Spanish Armada by Sir Francis Drake, Queen Elizabeth's Admiral. Pictures shown for information only. Some text is quoted from an article by Mr Steve Rabbitts on London trayned bands
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Code: 23226

A Very Nice Original Simkin Watercolour of an Officer 2nd Lifeguards 1876

Simkin was born in Herne Bay, Kent, on 5 November 1850, (some references cite 1840) the son of a commercial traveller, also named Richard. After marrying his wife, Harriet, in 1880, He spent much of his time at Aldershot, Hampshire, and may also have been a volunteer in the Artists Rifles. He was employed by the War Office to design recruiting posters, and to illustrate the Army and Navy Gazette. In 1901, he created a series of 'Types of the Indian Army' for the Gazette. he obtained much of the information from the Colonial and India Exhibition of 1886. During his lifetime, he, along with Orlando Norrie produced thousands of watercolours depicting the uniforms and campaigns of the British Army. Simkin also contributed illustrations to numerous publications including the Boy?s Own Magazine, The Graphic and others; many were published by Raphael Tuck and sons.
He died at his home at 7 Cavendish Street, Herne Bay on 25 June 1926, survived by his wife and two daughters. Today, his pictures can be seen in numerous regimental museums and his illustrations appear in regimental histories, 7 inches x 9.8 inches  read more

Code: 23070

A Most Scarce Graf Zeppelin Airship LZ127: Polar flight 1931 -Silver Medal

990 fine silver, in excellent condition. On July 24, 1931, the airship "Graf Zeppelin" took off from Friedrichshafen for the then sensational polar or Antarctic voyage. The route led via Friedrichshafen, Berlin-Staaken, to Leningrad, Franz-Josef-Land (Arctic), back via Berlin-Tempelhof to Friedrichshafen. The impressive driving distance was 13,308 km.
The idea of using airships to explore the Arctic had been a dream of Count Zeppelin 20 years earlier, but was put on hold during World War I. Roald Amundsen had taken a Dornier Wal flying boat to the Arctic in July 1925, and commented that an airship would have been a better vehicle for the journey. Arctic exploration was one reason used to justify the restoration of Germany's right to build airships. Eckener had taken Graf Zeppelin on a three-day trip to Norway and Spitsbergen in July 1930 to test its performance in the region. This was followed by a three-day flight to Iceland.Both trips were completed without technical problems.

The International Society for the Exploration of the Arctic by Air (Aeroarctic) was interested in getting Eckener involved in a polar flight. Fridtjof Nansen, the president of Aeroarctic, died suddenly, and Eckener was offered the presidency. Overwhelmed by the offer, he consulted the German Chancellor, Heinrich Brüning, who was unable to help him.Wilkins then suggested a polar rendezvous. The initial plan was to meet the Nautilus (SS-73), the submarine in which Wilkins was attempting a trip under the polar ice. The submarine suffered technical problems and was later scuttled off Bergen, Norway.

The polar flight (Polarfahrt 1931) lasted from 24 to 31 July 1931. Graf Zeppelin carried emergency equipment including tents, inflatable boats, fishing equipment, petrol stoves, and 4,100 kg (9,000 lb) of food. To save weight, luxury fittings were removed and the beds were replaced by lightweight bunks. The ship rendezvoused with the Soviet icebreaker Malygin, which had the Italian polar explorer Umberto Nobile aboard. It exchanged 120 kg (260 lb) of souvenir mail with the airship, which Eckener landed on the Arctic Ocean, using canvas buckets of sea water to descend to the surface, flotation aids, and a sea anchor to hold position. Fifty thousand cards and letters, weighing 300 kg (660 lb), were flown. The costs of the expedition were met largely by the sale of special postage stamps issued by Germany and the Soviet Union to frank the mail carried on the flight.

The writer Arthur Koestler was one of two journalists on board, along with a multinational team of scientists led by the Russian Professor Samoilowich, who measured the Earth's magnetic field, and a Russian radio operator, Ernst Krenkel.The expedition photographed and mapped Franz Josef Land accurately for the first time, and came within 910 kilometres (570 mi; 490 nmi) of the North Pole. It deployed three early radiosondes over the Arctic to collect meteorological data from the upper atmosphere; they were released through a specially built large hatch in the keel, with a weight that dropped away, allowing them to climb. LZ-127 and boat from the Soviet icebreaker Malygin at Franz-Josef Land
A rather dramatic scene of the U-LZ127 GRAF ZEPPELIN loading or unloading passengers being ferried between it an a large steamer during its July 1931 Arctic voyage.by Alexander Kircher The painting sold in 2005 at Cowan's Auction, Cincinnati in for $19,550  read more

Code: 24169

A Superb, Antique, Meteoric Steel Kris With Singularly Beautiful Blade of Meteorite Steel. The Metalurgical Graining in The Blade Is Absolutely Spectacular

Made with laminate steel and pamor and likely with metal from a meteorite. An old, 18th century Bali Keris [or Kris] with a superbly sculpted serpentine seven wave blade bearing pamor wos wutah. The old wrongko is the batun form in the South Bali style, it is made from an outstanding piece of timoho. The old bondolan hilt is from well patterned timoho wood and is fitted with an old wewer set with pastes.
This keris displays impeccable blade quality in a scabbard of beautifully marked timoho wood and is an outstanding example of the Balinese keris. Pamor is the pattern of white lines appearing on the blade. Kris blades are forged by a technique known as pattern welding, one in which layers of different metals are pounded and fused together while red hot, folded or twisted, adding more different metals, pounded more and folded more until the desired number of layers are obtained. The rough blade is then shaped, filed and sometimes polished smooth before finally acid etched to bring out the contrasting colors of the low and high carbon metals. The traditional Indonesian weapon allegedly endowed with religious and mystical powers. With probably a traditional Meteorite laminated iron blade with hammered nickel for the contrasting pattern. Traditionally the pamor material for the kris smiths connected with the courts of Yogyakarta and Surakarta originates from an iron meteorite that fell to earth at the end of 18th century in the neighborhood of the Prambanan temple complex. The meteorite was excavated and transported to the keraton of Surakarta; from that time on the smiths of Vorstenlanden (the Royal territories) used small pieces of meteoric iron to produce pamor patterns in their kris, pikes, and other status weapons. After etching the blade with acidic substances, it is the small percentage of nickel present in meteoric iron that creates the distinctive silvery patterns that faintly light up against the dark background of iron or steel that become darkened by the effect of the acids.  read more

Code: 22611

1928 Graf Zeppelin Plaque of the LZ127 Graf Zeppelin. By Heinrich & Co.

A Rare 1928 Graf Zeppelin Porcelain Wall Plaque
Depicting the LZ127 Graf Zeppelin. By Heinrich and Co. Inscribed on the reverse Forrngebung Fachoberiehrer, W-Veit Decoration Facheihrer Otto Keitel, Entwurf begutachtet una genehmigt von der Luftshiffbau Zeppelin Gmbh Friedrichshafen 1928, Ges Geschutzt -- 9.75in. (25cm.) diameter
The LZ-127, Graf Zeppelin, was arguably the most important zeppelin ever, the airship that put post WW I German aviation back on the map. Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin inaugurated German lighter-than-air aviation at the turn of the 20th Century. His zeppelins caught the German public?s imagination, and they became extremely popular. During WW I, his zeppelins flew for both the Army and Navy. Once more, the zeppelins caught the German people?s imagination. Even civilians and military officers who were bombing targets, both on the continent and in England, were impressed by the giant machines. Graf von Zeppelin died in 1917, and his company, which passed to Hugo Eckner?s management, faced difficult times in post WW I Germany. As a part of Germany?s war reparations, the Zeppelin Company built and delivered the LZ-126 (eventually renamed the U.S.S. Los Angeles) to the U.S. Navy in 1924. Eckner personally commanded the LZ-126 on the flight to the U.S. The engendered excitement allowed the company to build the LZ-127, eventually known as the "Graf Zeppelin." It was placed in service in 1928.
The Graf Zeppelin remained in service from September 1928 until a month after the Hindenburg exploded in New Jersey in May 1937. During this time, the "Graf Zeppelin" flew almost six hundred flights and covered more than one million miles. With the destruction of the "Hindenburg," the zeppelin era sadly came to an end. During her nine years of flight, the LZ-127 circled the globe, flying from Europe to the USA and on to Asia. She even had numerous voyages to South America. It was travel on a grand scale for less-than-thirty lucky people at a time. A crew of about twenty-four served the passengers. Trips from Germany to the U.S. were much faster than any other vessel of the time. Life aboard the "Graf Zeppelin" was very gracious.  read more

Code: 22597