Buddy B Posted 19 January , 2023 Share Posted 19 January , 2023 Hi all. I have two ww1 era shell casings (excuse me if my terminology is wrong) that have been made into Trench art depicting the royal engineers, both naming one particular soldier /sapper. that I am trying to find a bit more about. They have been in the family for over 60 years. It's the markings on the head space and identifying the shells themselves that I'm interested in. having done a bit of research this is where I am now at. photograph 1 polte Magdeburg:- made in the polt works Magdeburg. Germany. MAI 1916:- made in May 1916. SP252:- inspection number from the factory. 6:- the number 6 has me stumped Photograph 2. Ep:- denotes that it was made at the Ecole De Pyrotechnie factory in Antwerp, Belgium. 96:- this again has me stumped. Size wise they are not the 75mm shell casings that seem to be quite plentiful, these are smaller. I am aware that they would have been somewhat taller having now been cut down and scalloped. I think or should I say hope that I'm on the right track by saying that they are from 57mm shells (57x224R) fired/shot from the Maxim Nordenfelt 57mm field gun. any input would be greatly appreciated many thanks.  Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peregrinvs Posted 19 January , 2023 Share Posted 19 January , 2023 I think you pretty much have it. The 6 on the German 5.7cm case is a batch number and the 96 on the Belgian 57mm case is the year 1896. More info on the gun here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5.7_cm_Maxim-Nordenfelt As used in the first German tank - the A7V. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buddy B Posted 19 January , 2023 Author Share Posted 19 January , 2023 Many thanks Peregrines now with suspicions conformed it's time to dig a bit deeper into the maxim nordenfelt factories that I'm led to believe were in the north Kent / south London area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunner Bailey Posted 19 January , 2023 Share Posted 19 January , 2023 Vickers Sons & Maxim had works in Erith and Crayford. Vickers, Sons and Maxim - Graces Guide Useful link. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buddy B Posted 19 January , 2023 Author Share Posted 19 January , 2023 Thanks Gunner Bailey, I know of the old Vickers facilities in Erith, I'm about 10 miles from there. What I didn't know about was the collaboration between Vickers and maxim. More digging I fear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trajan Posted 20 January , 2023 Share Posted 20 January , 2023 Welcome to GFW BuddyB! And nice to something more out of the ordinary in the shell casing line! Have you traced your sapper yet? Trajan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buddy B Posted 20 January , 2023 Author Share Posted 20 January , 2023 Hi Trajan Not a lot to go on, just an initial, surname and a date of 1919. Buddy B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trajan Posted 20 January , 2023 Share Posted 20 January , 2023 3 hours ago, Buddy B said: Hi Trajan Not a lot to go on, just an initial, surname and a date of 1919. Buddy B That's a start! Ancestry (no connection) is the place to start. I found my granddad there even though all I had to go on was forename and surname - and he has perhaps the most common foreaname and surname of any Irish background Tommy! Trajan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buddy B Posted 20 January , 2023 Author Share Posted 20 January , 2023 Hi Trajan, so many sites to choose from. Think I might enlist the help of my cousins wife as she's somewhat of an amateur genealogist researching family trees for friends. Buddy B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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