This case may have once attached to the belt of a soldier as a carry case for an artillery sight.Dark leather case constructed of two elongated semi-circle shapes, hand or machine stitched with a gusset. Edges trimmed in leather binding and rectangular lid held in place on one side by stitched leather hinge and fastened with metal buckle on other side. Reverse of the case has a leather loop held in place with stitching and 6 metal studs or rivets; a metal rectangular loop is stitched in place with fine wire twisted and attached to loop. Interior of case appears to be felted wool or fibre, cream in colour with small leather loop on right side, perhaps to hold a small accessory. Front of case is stamped with manufacturer's name; lid has remnants of a circular adhesive label.Manufacturer's stamp reads "FRANZ COBAL/BERLIN/1916"carry case, bag, accessory, acoutrement, world war one, military, uniform, world war i, first world war, the great war, germany, german, berlin, franz cobal, franz cobalt, artillery sight

Sight clinometer MK IV used in conjunction with the QF 25 PDR field gun. Complete with leather protective transit case, standard equipment issued with the 25 PDR artillery piece. Refer to 00111.1 and 00111.2ww2, sight, 25 pdr, qf 25 pdr, 25 pounder, field gun, sight clinometer mkiv

Sight clinometer MK IV used in conjunction with the QF 25 PDR field gun. This device was mounted on a fitting beside the gun barrel and used to accurately indicate the elevation of the gun barrel. The device is calibrated in degrees and minutes and is adjustable enabling the weapon to be accurately aimed. Standard equipment issued with the 25 PDR artillery piece. Refer to items 00111 and 00111.2

A purpose made protective transit case for the sight clinometer MK IV used in conjunction with the QF 25 PDR field gun. Standard equipment issued with the 25 PDR artillery piece. Refer to items 00111 and 00111.1

Appears to be part of sighting telescope for artillery. Further ID information has been sought from various sources, in including the Royal Australian Artillery History Company. The RAAHC have been most cooperative and interested in attempting to identify the equipment of which this item is a part, but with no firm details on its use or history at the time of cataloguing. Detailed communication between RAAHC and MERSL are available from the latter.Off-centre ring part way along barrel has engravings for elevation (?), ranging from 57 to 69 (see 4th picture above). Actual numbers engraved are 57 63 69, with small engravings to mark each degree between these intervals.

This gun sight was brought home from WWI (1914-1918) by members of the 13th Battery 5th Field Artillery Brigade (Albury Battery) as a souvenir of its action in the first battle of Bullecourt April 1917. On one occasion during the battle the Battery was surrounded by a German counter attack. They dragged their guns out of the gun pits and continued firing to the flanks and rear and supported the Australian counter penetration attack which restored the situation. After the war a recreational reserve in Albury NSW was named Noreuil Park after the French village near where the action occurred.A rare object with significant connection to Albury NSW and its citizen soldiers who served with the AIF in WWI (1914-1918). The engraving gives it close association with the recreational park in Albury named after the French village of Noreuil and honouring the soldiers who fought there with great courage. Range drum portion of the sighting mechanism from an 18 Pounder field gun made of brass and other metals. The object is engraved with the word NOREUIL and the date 2.4.17.Serial No 5459; and NOREUIL 2.4.17gun sight, noreuil, albury, 13th battery

bore sighting telescope for 6 pounder anti-tank cannon for calibration & testing; the canon was used in WW2 by British & other forces. Australian Army had about 100Bore sighting telescope 57mm for 6 pounder Anti-tank gun in painted wooden caseCase: #7, MK2, V1/05 588 GAtelescope bore sighting, w ottway & co ealing, artillery, 6 pounder cannon, world war 2

Denis Gibbons (1937 – 2011) Trained with the Australian Army, before travelling to Vietnam in January 1966, Denis stayed with the 1st Australian Task Force in Nui Dat working as a photographer. For almost five years Gibbons toured with nine Australian infantry battalions, posting compelling war images from within many combat zones before being flown out in late November 1970 after sustaining injuries. The images held within the National Vietnam Veterans Museum make up the Gibbons Collection. A black and white photograph of Phuoc Tuy, South Vietnam, 1969. A 105mm artillery piece fires 'Fleshette' and 'Cannister' rounds on 'open sight' at NVA/VietCong, wave attacks against Fire Support Base Anderson. This type of action was also used at Fire Bases Coral, Balmoral amd Coogeephotograph, phuoc tuy, gibbons collection catalogue, 105mm artillery, fire support base anderson, fire support base - coral, fire support base balmoral, fire support base coogee, nva/vietcong, denis gibbons

Martini-Henry Artillery Carbin rifles were made by the Royal Small Arms Factory at Enfield, Britain, from 1877 until 1900. Many were distributed to the British Colonies, including this pair, which was allocated to the Woodford Police, Victoria Police District of Warrnambool, Southwest Victoria. The Carbine model rifles were shorter than the standard rifles and more suited to mounted police and troopers. It is likely that in the early 20th century, Victoria Police replaced the two carbines with more modern firearms, and the outdated guns were stored in the stables. The rifles were left there and likely forgotten about due to changes in police staff. In 1915, police authorities announced that they would be replacing patrol horses with bicycles and would also close some smaller police stations. This affected Woodford Police Station, which closed in 1917. The forgotten firearms remained in the stables and were noticed by schoolboy Robert Jellie in 1940 and seen again in 1946. In 1995, the property was sold by the Education Department to a private owner. The Woodford Community donated the pair of Martini-Henry Carbines to the Victoria Police Museum in the late 1990s for mounting and display, which was funded by the Victoria Police Historical Society Inc. The decorative wood and glass display case and frame were designed to preserve the significant history of the guns. On November 1st 1999, the display was presented to Warrnambool Police and the local community due to the historical significance of the Woodford Police Station. In 2025, these items were formally deaccessioned by the Victoria Police Museum, and ownership was transferred to the Warrnambool Police Station. On March 10th, 2025, the display was transferred to Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village, where the historical story of the Martini-Henry Carbines could continue to be preserved and accessed by local families, the community, visitors to the area, and online visitors. WOODFORD POLICE: - The small settlement at Woodford was established in the 1840s around the Merri River where there was a ford across the water and a bridge from 1848 to 1851. The area was settled very early in Victoria’s history, and the river crossing provided travellers with access to the early route between Port Fairy (named Belfast at that time), Warrnambool and Melbourne. Occasionally, a Warrnambool police trooper would ride through Woodford and the district. In December 1854, Woodford Police barracks and stables were built on the hill by the Merri River on Bridge Road east, where Jubilee Park now stands. A local mounted trooper kept law and order in the area. In 1856, a lock-up was installed, and the first Woodford Police Station was in action in 1857. By 1871, the police station had been moved from the hill to land across the Merri River bridge, on the southern side of Bridge Road west, near Mill Street. In 1890, the police residence there was replaced by a stone Edwardian-style building with the stables and lock-up behind it and the old police station at the rear. The police continued to have a presence in Woodford until it was closed by the Police Commissioner in July 1917 for economic reasons. The residence was used for government housing until 1923, when it was taken over by the Education Department for the school teacher’s home. In 1995, it became privately owned. THE MARTINI-HENRY ARTILLERY CARBINE: - The Martini-Henry rifles were made in Britain from 1871 at the Royal Small Arms factory at Enfield and were stamped with the symbol of the Royal Cipher (Crown over VR) over ENFIELD to identify their origin. They were named after two of several people who helped design this method: Swiss Friederich von Martini and Scotsman Alexander Henry. The design was breech-loaded, and the inner barrel was rifled. A thumb rest was incorporated into the top right of the bullet receiver’s chamber. The small teardrop lever on the right side of the rifle showed whether the rifle was ready to be shot. In 1877, the shorter, lighter-weight Carbine version of the firearm was produced for mounted troops and artillery. Its official name was “Carbine, B.L., Rifled, Martini-Henry.” The bullets were slightly lighter in weight than those used for the longer rifle. The sight position was adjusted for the shorter gun, and wings were added to the sight on the tip, making it easier to slide the rifle back into a saddle bag. Some of the later Carbines also had leather sight covers screwed to the stock to prevent them from catching on the saddle bags. The Carbines had accessories available, such as barrel extensions with bayonets and swivels for adding slings. The Martini-Henry Carbine designs were later modified to fire the British .303 ammunition. Eventually, by 1900, the Martini-Henry Carbines were replaced by the Lee Enfield gun design. The pair of Martini-Henry Carbine firearms represents policing in the early pre-1900 days of colonial settlement; Woodford was one of the first townships settled in Victoria, and it had a police presence from 1854 until 1917. The rifles and display provide a historic connection between the location of Woodford and relatives and associates. The carbine rifles show a stage in the evolution of weapon design, adapted to suit mounted troops, and adding features to streamline use and storage. The ammunition was also improved during this progression. The carbines are important for their connection to policing law and order in a remote area. They are significant for their association with the township of Woodford, which was important to travel in the southwest Victoria district, providing access across a river for a road between Port Fairy and Melbourne, and later Warrnambool, and supplying food, goods and accommodation for the travellers. A pair of mounted rifles is mounted behind glass in a timer case, accompanied by a framed display of two photographs and an account of the rifles’ history. The case and display each have a horizontal board with a gently curved edge and carved decorations added. The identical firearms are British-made Martini Henry Carbine breach-loaded rifled guns, supplied by Britain to its Colonial troops from around 1877. The rifles are lever-action, single-shot .500 calibre weapons. They have a teardrop lever on their right side. They were used by Victoria Police mounted troops at the Woodford Police Station, Victoria. The black and white photographs were taken in 1946. The left photograph has a circled area; the right photograph is an enlarged view of the circled area, showing the Woodford Police Station in detail. The printed text is on textured paper with the Victoria Police watermark. It gives a summary of the rifle’s history. There is an inscription on the left photograph. Left photograph, handwritten in white pen: “WOODFORD” Document’s print: “During the late 1840s the small town of Woodford grew around the crossing of the Merri River on the Melbourne/Port Fairy Rad. Woodford was proclaimed a township in 1854 and a police quarters was established there in 1857. The police station remained until 1917 when it was closed and police service from then on was provided from Warrnambool. The building was then used as a school residence and is now privately owned. In !940 Robert JELLIE, then a schoolboy, observed two rifles mounted on the wall of the disused stable at the rear of the old police building. Following the devastating flood of 1946 (see photograph above) the rifles were again seen in the room next to the stable but were not seen again until the building was sold by the Education Department many years later. It was a recognition of the historical value of the rifles which led to their donation to the Warrnambool Police Complex. The rifles have been authenticated by the Victoria Police Armoury as being Victoria Police issue some time before 1900. The rifles are an identical pair of the famous British-made Martini Henry, a .500 inch calibre military weapon widely used by British Colonial troops. Victoria Police and the wider community of Warrnambool are indebted to the members of the Woodford community for their fine gesture in donating the rifles for mounting so that their historical importance can be preserved and they can be displayed for generations to come. This display was funded by the Victoria Police Historical Society Incorporated, and presented on the first day of November, 1999.”flagstaff hill maritime museum and village, great ocean road, shipwreck coast, martini henry, victoria police, woodford police station, rifle, carbine, display case, british, martini henry carbine, breech-loaded, rifled, colonial, single-shot, .500 calibre, weapon, gun, 1877, troops, mounted troops, merri river, victoria police woodford, victoria police warrnambool, victoria police melbourne, police quarters, robert jellie, school residence, stable, 1946 flood, victoria police armoury, identical pair, british colonial troops, victoria police historical society incorporated, woodford, bicycles, found by a schoolboy, edwardian-style building, victoria police museum, warrnambool police station

Denis Gibbons (1937 – 2011) Trained with the Australian Army, before travelling to Vietnam in January 1966, Denis stayed with the 1st Australian Task Force in Nui Dat working as a photographer. For almost five years Gibbons toured with nine Australian infantry battalions, posting compelling war images from within many combat zones before being flown out in late November 1970 after sustaining injuries. The images held within the National Vietnam Veterans Museum make up the Gibbons Collection.A black and white ohotograph of Bdr. Beasley watches Gnr Dave Thomas adjusts the gun sight, while Gnr Owen Herbert readies the gun for firing, 104 Battery Royal Australian Artillery, at Fire Base Betty. The battery was in action against NVA/VietCong sappers attempting to attack the giant US supply depot at Long Binh in Bien Hoa Province during the 1969 Tet Offensivephotograph, brig beasley, gnr dave thomas, gnr owen herbert, 104 battery raa, fire base betty, nva/vc, tet offensive, 1969, long bien, bien hoa province, gibbons collection catalogue, royal australian artillery, nva/vietcong sappers, us supply depot, denis gibbons

Denis Gibbons (1937 – 2011) Trained with the Australian Army, before travelling to Vietnam in January 1966, Denis stayed with the 1st Australian Task Force in Nui Dat working as a photographer. For almost five years Gibbons toured with nine Australian infantry battalions, posting compelling war images from within many combat zones before being flown out in late November 1970 after sustaining injuries. The images held within the National Vietnam Veterans Museum make up the Gibbons Collection.A black and white photograph Bdr Beasley watches Gnr Dave Thomas adjust the gun sight, while Gnr Owen Herbert readies the gun for firing. 104 Battery Royal Australian Artillery at Fire Base Betty. The battery was in action against NVA/VietCong sappers attempting to attack the giant US supply depot at Long Binh in Bien Hoa Province during the 1969 Tet Offensivephotograph, 104 battery raa, brig beasley, gnr dave thomas, gnr owen herbert, fire base betty, nva/vc, long binh, bien hoa province, gibbons collection catalogue, nva/vietcong sappers, us supply depot, tet offensive, 1969, denis gibbons

A black and white photograph of Gnr Stuart Brooksby walks back into the 105mm gun position as Gnr Smith checks the gun sight and Grn Dick Gray makes adjustment, prior to firing. in support of 4 RAR/NZ (ANZAC) infantry elements in contact with the NVA/VC sappers attempting to attack the giant US supply depot at Long Binh in Bien Hoa province during the Tet OffensiveA black and white photograph of Gnr Stuart Brooksby walks back into the 105mm gun position as Gnr Smith checks the gun sight and Grn Dick Gray makes adjustment, prior to firing. in support of 4 RAR/NZ (ANZAC) infantry elements in contact with the NVA/VC sappers attempting to attack the giant US supply depot at Long Binh in Bien Hoa province during the Tet Offensivephotograph, artillery, 4 rar nz, tet offensive, long binh, bien hoa province, gnr stuart brooksby, gnr smith, gnr dick gray, gibbons collection catalogue, gunner, 105mm artillery, 4 rar/nz (anzac), nva/vietcong sappers, us supply depot, denis gibbons

Denis Gibbons (1937 – 2011) Trained with the Australian Army, before travelling to Vietnam in January 1966, Denis stayed with the 1st Australian Task Force in Nui Dat working as a photographer. For almost five years Gibbons toured with nine Australian infantry battalions, posting compelling war images from within many combat zones before being flown out in late November 1970 after sustaining injuries. The images held within the National Vietnam Veterans Museum make up the Gibbons Collection.A black and white photograph of - As one Gunner of 104 Battery RAA at Fire Base Betty places a 105mm round in his gun his fellow Gunners check the gun sight and make other adjustments prior to firing, in support of 4 RAR/NZ (ANZAC) infantry elements in contact with the NVA/VietCong sappers attempting to attack the giant US supply depot at Long Binh in Bien Hoa province during the Tet Offensivephotograph, artillery, 104 battery raa, 4rar nz, nva/vc, long bien, tet offensive, gibbons collection catalogue, fire base betty, gunner, 105mm artillery, royal australian artillery, nva/vietcong sappers, us supply depot, gunners, denis gibbons