Australian Army issue gas respirator

Gas respirator consisting of a black rubber face mask, connected by a fabric covered rubber hose to a chemical absorbent canister made of tin plate. The face mask is made of light weight black rubber and is in good condition. A stamp made in ink on the back pad of the harness joining the elastic straps has the markings 'No 4 Mark III' and two dates, one being 10-9-42. This refers to the type of head harness being No 4, Mark III and consists of three elastic bands threaded trough slots in the pad to form six bands attached to the face piece. The circular eyepieces are made of clear celluloid set in metal rims. The mouthpiece is of brown metal and is stamped with 'EBRO' on the right side and '1942' on the left side. The flexible 258mm rubber hose connecting the mask to the canister is covered with a pale green stockinette fabric, which is vulcanised to the fabric for strength. It is corrugated to give flexibility and to prevent collapse that would impede the airflow, The hose is secured to the mask and canister by twisted wires with fabric tape covering the sharp ends. The rectangular tin canister has an overall red/brown finish and soldered seams, and has two horizontal holes on each side.

This respirator is associated with the service of John Grieves Dyson in the Victorian ARP during the Second World War. John Dyson lived in Austin Street, Geelong. During the war, with his brothers, he owned and ran a foundry that manufactured wool scouring machines for use in knitting mills that produced wool for soldiers uniforms.

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