RAA – Belt Buckle

[Peter]

Hello all.

I trust a Belt Buckle qualifies as a badge.

Could this buckle be identified, please.

My son (officer, Royal Australian Artillery) picked it up in a second hand shop a couple of years ago. Neither his RSM nor his (RSM’s) mates could identify it.

Thanks in advance.

Peter

[badgecollector]

hi peter
i have only ever seen this type of buckle once before for sale and i think from memory it was dated pre ww2.
either way i think it is a rare item and it sold for several hundreds dollars..
i will try and do some extra research for you
bc

[engr9266]

RSM WITH "MATES" NO this must be wrong..............

[Peter]

Thanks a lot bc

[kingsley]

I suspect that his buckle is post war, maybe 1960s or even later and that it was worn by the RAA band. It would be much better known if it was general issue. Definitely a scarce item. I recently acquired a similar buckle (also not documented) which said "Tasmania Command Band", same lion in the centre. A lot of Australian army band badges keep turning up and they are not documented at all, about time someone did some research. I once shared a train journey with some elderly band members of the NSW Scottish regiment coming home from a performance in Sydney. Their badges were totally new to me.

[badgecollector]

hi kingsley
any chance of a pic of the Tasmania Command Band buckle.
i agree, there are many aussie buckles with no formal documentation or research. good project for someone
bc

[kingsley]

Sorry it has taken me so long to do the scan. As you can see, the buckle is very similar to the Artillery type, without a doubt contemporary. The term "Tasmania Command" would have to be post war, before WW2 Australia was divided into six numbered "Military Districts".
I believe that both are band buckles, and like I wrote in my previous post, they are two of a large number of unknown and unresearched band insignia.

[kingsley]

Sorry forgot to include the scan in my previous post.