Historical information
This coat would have been part of a St Johns Brigade ambulance uniform. The buttons were made by A J Parkes, who manufactured buttons for the Australian Defence force. A J Parkes began manufacturing plastic injection moulded buttons from the early 1980's which suggests that the coat would have been made and worn during the late 20th century.
Significance
This item is representative of a particular piece of uniform that would have been worn by a member of the St Johns Ambulance Brigade. It has historic significance as an item dating to the late 20th century which may have been used in the service of wounded military personnel. It also has some areas of staining which could have been coused by contact with blood. This could potentially be useful for scientific research purposes.
Physical description
Off white knee length coat with long sleeves. There is an epoulette on each shoulder and pointed collars. There is a deep waist pocket on either side of the coat. There is one silver plastic button at the top of each pocket. These have the St John Ambulance symbol on the front, which consists of an eight pointed cross, with two very small lions and two very small unicorns nestled in the corners of the cross. These motifs are surrounded by the words "THE ST JOHN AMBULANCE BRIGADE". The epoulettes are fastened with one identical button each. Underneath each epoulette there is also a clear plastic button attached the shoulder seam. Each sleeve has a 36mm long cuff which is fastened with one St John Ambulance Brigade button each. There are 10 clear plastic buttons that fasten the entire front of the coat. The back has two pleats commencing near the nape of the neck. The back of the collar on the interior seam has a label which has been cut and shows only a small amount of detail. Printed in faded blue on the label is: "E.R. TIMMINS".
