| Accession Number | P03217.005 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Negative |
| Maker |
Unknown |
| Place made | Australia: New South Wales, Sydney, Ryde |
| Date made | c May 1943 |
| Conflict |
Second World War, 1939-1945 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Portrait of QX1253 Captain (Capt) Russell Wilkinson Forster MC following a bone graft operation ...
Description
Portrait of QX1253 Captain (Capt) Russell Wilkinson Forster MC following a bone graft operation at Concord Hospital during his reconstructive treatment for a serious gun shot wound to the lower jaw. Capt Forster, Officer Commanding C Company, 2/9th Battalion, sustained this injury in December 1942 while fighting in Gona, New Guinea, for which he was later awarded a Military Cross for the courage and coolness shown. Capt Forster commenced a period of three years in and out of Concord hospital, undergoing plastic surgery for the serious wounds he had sustained. Bone from his hip was grafted to his jaw, a major operation, one of a series of more than thirty operations to reconstruct his lower jaw.