BRITISH WWI 253rd TUNNELLING COMPANY MINING PERISCOPE.

A fabulous piece of British engineering being a cased periscope number 31. Maker marked 'A.Kershore & Son Limited, Leeds' a clear date of '1918' broad arrow marked with the periscope number '197'. This very fine piece of engineering with the outer box maker marked, WD stamped, Periscope number '31' also stamped number '82' stencilled '253' to the upper left hand side of the lid, which indicates the 253rd Tunnelling Company. The laying of underground mines was a huge operation during WWI and this periscope was used by the 253rd Tunnelling Company, served under the 4th Army from its formation in January 1916 until after the end of hostilities. It operated in the Loos battlefield, the 1917 attack on Ypres. The item is a very nicely constructed square periscope measuring 28cms in length with its frame, the periscope works on a cantilever system and is in military olive drab colour and would probably have been used during the construction of tunnels for the laying of mines under the enemy defences. A good very description of this instrument is described in the excellent work Dominating the Enemy within the chapter on periscopes.

Code: 75875