Curio

State Library of New South Wales
'Dear May … from Rob'

'Dear May … from Rob'

sent ‘On Active Service’ from Palestine, 25 November 1917
Irish linen white shirt cuff with buttonholes at each edge
Bequest of Sir William Dixson, 1952
DR 89

At the time Rob posted this letter, Australian troops were deployed in the Middle East as part of a larger British campaign, which included the defence of the Suez Canal and occupation of the Sinai Peninsula. Following the Battle of Beersheba on 31 October 1917, famous for the mounted charge by the Australian 4th Light Horse Brigade, British forces stormed through Turkish defences to seize the strategic town of Beersheba and advance into Palestine.

Rob may have found this shirt cuff when he travelled through the cleared lines after the Beersheba battle. Rob had clearly made it into Palestine by 25 November, and had come upon a stash of German belongings which had been abandoned as the Germans and Turks retreated. Made of fine Irish linen with buttonholes for cufflinks visible on each side, the cuff would have been owned by an officer. It still remains crisp with starch.

With regular washing difficult and most of a man’s shirt hidden under coats or waistcoats, shirts could be worn for days or weeks on end. To overcome the problem of dirty cuffs and collars, early shirts were designed to have detachable collars and cuffs.

Retreating armies leave all kinds of items behind on the battlefields. These were often collected by the advancing troops to become prized souvenirs, treasured, traded or handed down through families long after returning home. This kind of souveniring is now prohibited but the collecting and trade of World War I battle souvenirs is still extremely popular today, particularly on the internet.

With a suitable climate and cheap labour, Northern Ireland became a leading producer of high-grade linen, which was exported all over the world. The area of Belfast and Northern Ireland was called Linenopolis, due to the large amounts of linen produced and exported, particularly with increased demand brought about by the American Civil War and World War I.

‘Jacko’ was a colloquial term for a Turkish soldier.

Rob’s letter has been stamped as 'Passed by censor No. 4321'. In the field, all soldiers’ mail was checked by an officer to remove any information of operational significance. Officers were trusted to self-censor.