A Christmas mystery

[Another Bubble]

Hello all,

I hope Santa helped you all to grow your collections as well as your waistlines.

I managed to add 8 new badges to my collection as well as 3 books, all thanks to oc14 for helping my family source the items.

In addition to this, my sister & her partner gave me 3 items of militaria that were completely unexpected. All were given to my sister's partner by one of his cousins who rescued them from going to the tip following a house clearance in Rhyl about 30 years ago. He'd simply stuck them in a cupboard & forgot about them until they were packing his belongings up prior to moving in together a month ago.

The first was a First World War Victory Medal which is pretty self explanatory, but the other 2 items are a bit of a mystery. One is a leather box with a couple of leather straps, measuring 14cm x 9cm x 4cm & has "A.C.H." stamped on the front. I think it's a cartridge pouch but would appreciate confirmation of this. Also, is there any significance to the letters & if so, what?

The other is a Royal Coat of Arms made of very thin metal, measuring approximately 9cm at both its highest & widest points. There are no lugs on the back, nor any evidence of there ever having been any that have broken off. Neither can I see any other way that it might be fastened to something so I'm at a total loss as to what it might be. All ideas welcome.

I'd like to add that whilst they're all outside of my field of interest, because a) they were gifts & b) I'm a total hoarder, I have no intention of selling them.

Thanks n advance.

Steve

[Sawstonjohn]

Hi Steve

Do you have the naming from rim of the Victory Medal? It might help to connect to the other items


John

[Another Bubble]

Hi John,

Yes, the engraving on the medal reads "2724 Pte. S. Young S. Staffs. R.".

Steve

[Sawstonjohn]

A bit more about Sydney.....

First name(s) Sydney Henry
Last name Young
Service number 2724
Rank Lance Corporal
Silver War Badge number 18809
Enlistment date 03-Sep-1914
Discharge date 27-Jul-1916
Unit from which discharged 6th. S. Staffs.
Cause of discharge Wounds 392 xvi
Whether served overseas Yes
Silver War Badge date of issue 02-Nov-1916


Perhaps some of this will help others tie into the other items?

[leigh kitchen]

I've had similar QVC coat of arms badges, nicely struck but of thin metal that have been sweated or soldered on to things like cast iron water tanks along with seperate plates detailing the manufacturer etc.

[Advsmt]

On closer scrutiny of the first photograph, I think the pouch is actually a very rare mince pie holder, in fact it could hold any cake! A.C.H. - the Acme Cake Holder no less!

Bryan

[Another Bubble]

Very good!

[GriffMJ]

The Royal Arms are for a Woman.... hence the "Lozenge" shape. So this could have been made in 1838/9 before Queen Victoria's marriage to Prince Albert in 1840? Its not her arms as a Princess...... but as Queen?

[ASR142]

Hi Chaps
The leather pouch appears to be a sanwhich tin holder used by hunting people on horse back and also by officers during wwi and interwar periods and would strap to the sadle mountuing some how hope this helps steve

[Another Bubble]

So Advsmt wasn't far wide of the mark with Army Cake Holder!

[Donny B.]

Hi Steve,
A.C.H., as on that leather pouch, usually implies "Australian Commonwealth Horse". If that is indeed the case, I doubt very much that an Australian officer would be riding about with cake or sandwiches in it.

Check your PMs

Donny B.

[Eddie Parks]

Donny - I could well be wrong but I think a very similar item (with a silver-plate liner) was part of British officer's FS kit?? I certainly have one somewhere which belonged to my father. But then he was a fox-hunting man as well as an RHA officer so there might well be (was) a bit of cross fertilisation.

Eddie