Mother of Pearl camel brooch sent from Bethlehem by Theophilus Thomas Walters

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c. 1915

Historical information

Theophilus Thomas Walters was born in Stawell, Victoria in 1894. He enlisted as a Driver with the 3rd Section, Divisional Ammunition Column, on 26 August 1914 at the age of 20. His service number was 2732.
Theophilus embarked on HMAT A9 Shropshire for active service abroad on 20 October 1914. He joined the Meditteranean Expeditionary Force at Gallipoli on 30 April 1915, 5 days after the landing. He was admitted to the 15th Gemeral Hospital in Alexandria on 15 August 1915 with a 'not yet determined' problem. On 3 September 1915, he was transferred to the hospital ship, Ulysses, for return to Australia, disembarking on 30 September. He was medically discharged from the A.I.F. on 15 February 1916 due to a loose body in his knee.

He re-enlisted as a Sergeant in the Pay Corps in World War Two.

Two of his brothers also served in World War One - Private Percival William Walters, 14th Bn, service number 142, and Private Lionel Stanley Walters, 2nd Machine Gun Bn, service number 238.

Visiting servicemen and women purchased a variety of souvenirs from Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Palestine and The Holy Land while passing through on active service during both world wars.
Some of the more common items were embroideries such as cushion covers, painted artworks on fabric, jewellery made from mother of pearl, metal and timber, and photo albums with wooden covers filled with postcards of local scenes and pressed dried flowers.
There was also a range of trinket boxes, often with hidden drawers, made from the local olive wood and a range of other olive wood items including napkin rings and even a portable book shelf.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-119-RoW00776

Width

40 mm

Height or length

20 mm

Depth

5 mm

Place made

Bethlehem, Palestine, Israel

Year