Indian Volunteer Rifles buttons
 

I am a sometime collector of buttons. I collect them if I think that they are unusual or attractive. My "collection" has no real theme but one day I might get some sort of order into the assemblage. Today I acquired these Indian Volunteer Rifles buttons. The buttons in the first picture are easy to identify as they have the good grace to spell out their names. The two buttons in the second picture are not so obvious. The brass button from Bhopal has a central shield superimposed on crossed rifles. The initial SBI (or some variation thereof) are in the shield. Any ideas as to which unit this might be ?
The small white metal button has a victorian crown over the initial AVR in a wreath. I guess the VR stands for Volunteer Rifles, but what or where does the A represent.
Any assistance would be much appreciated .
Thanks
Mike

Only a guess, but a first looking at a list of (Infantry) Vols suggests the Allahabad Volunteer Rifle Corps, raised in 1871.

The AVR button has been sold on e-bay a couple of times.
The following names were attributed:
- Agra Volunteer Rifles
- Assam Volunteer Rifles

I have not searched Poulsom's books ...

I guess that it may be any ( or all of the units mentioned). In my collecting of badges of the Empire, I have come across a few instances of seemingly unrelated units using the insignia supplied by a common supplier. I know that the Durban Light Infantry share a few badges with the Durham Light Infantry. Maybe the Firmin salesman offered a better deal to the cash strapped colonial unit.
Thanks for the suggestions.
Regards
Mike

Hi Mike,

The Bhopal button is not of a Volunteer unit but belongs to an Indian State Force unit from the erstwhile princely state of Bhopal, most probably the Bhopal Sultania Infantry.