Bullet in cylindrical case : Private J W Anderson, 1 Victorian Contingent

Nickel plated brass dome-ended cylinder shaped case in two parts - a lid and a body - which screw together. The main body is also supplied with a screw shape at its other end, allowing the lid to be safely located once opened. Each end of the interior is packed with old newspaper, presumably to prevent the contents from moving and rattling. Contained within the case is a disharged and mis-shapen bullet of approximately 9 mm calibre. The nickel plating on the lid especially has almost been rubbed back to brass from use.

Bullet said to have been removed from the jaw of Private James William Anderson. Anderson embarked for South Africa in 1899 with the 1st Victorian Contingent. Murray notes that Anderson was invalided back to Australia, arriving 16 January 1901. He was discharged with a pension, presumably as a direct result of this bullet which wounded him at Mafeking. It is unclear what purpose the case was originally designed for - possibly a medical needle or pill case. Anderson's brother, Andrew Frederick, also fought in the Boer War, for 32 months, with Bethune's Mounted Infantry and then the Australian Commonwealth Horse, where he received a bullet wound to his stomach. The wound is likely to have been a minor one as he remained in South Africa until the end of the war in June 1902, and was discharged in Melbourne on 2 August 1902. He later joined 5 Battalion AIF in the First World War and was killed at Gallipoli on 26 April 1916 (see REL23631).