A vintage-style gold-toned vesta case with a crown emblem rests on the pages of an open antique book on a dark wooden table, surrounded by old books, a gold pen, and a red cloth.

Antique WWI Era Brass Vesta Case, Prince of Wales Feathers Badge, Ich Dien, Attributed Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry, Exceptional Condition

£210.00
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A vintage-style gold-toned vesta case with a crown emblem rests on the pages of an open antique book on a dark wooden table, surrounded by old books, a gold pen, and a red cloth.
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  • A vintage-style gold-toned vesta case with a crown emblem rests on the pages of an open antique book on a dark wooden table, surrounded by old books, a gold pen, and a red cloth.
  • A small antique bronze vesta case rests on the pages of an open vintage book, surrounded by old books, leather cases, and gold-toned accessories on a dark wooden surface.
  • A vintage-style bronze match case with a silver-toned decorative emblem rests on the open pages of an antique book. The scene is styled with other old books, a gold pen, and a red cloth on a dark wooden surface
  • A close-up of a silver-toned metal decorative emblem or hardware piece with engraved details, placed on a warm copper or bronze surface with a small round metallic stud nearby.
  • Close-up of a metallic gold object with a textured, brushed finish and a small raised metallic detail, set against a soft blurred olive-green background.
  • Close-up of a metallic bronze or copper-toned object with a spring-loaded hinge and a small ring loop, photographed against a blurred olive-green background.
Antique WWI Era Brass Vesta Case, Prince of Wales Feathers Badge, Ich Dien, Attributed Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry, Exceptional Condition

Antique WWI Era Brass Vesta Case, Prince of Wales Feathers Badge, Ich Dien, Attributed Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry, Exceptional Condition

£210.00
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Description

A man carried this to light his matches. He may have carried it to Ypres.

The Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry went to the Western Front as cavalry and came back as something else entirely. At Ypres, in the mud and the wire, the regiment suffered casualties that reshaped it permanently. The men who survived carried what they had brought with them: small objects, pocket things, the ordinary equipment of a life that the war had interrupted.

This vesta case is consistent with that world. A small square brass case, push-button opening, suspension loop at the top for attachment to a watch chain or lanyard. The front face bears an applied silver-tone badge: the Prince of Wales's feathers, three ostrich plumes rising from a coronet, with the scroll beneath reading ICH DIEN. I Serve. The badge is cast with fine detail, the feathers individually worked, the motto legible and clear. It is permanently fixed to the case and has not been removed or disturbed.

The Prince of Wales's feathers and Ich Dien motto were worn by several British Army units of the period, most notably those with Welsh and Home Counties regimental associations. The badge on this case is consistent with insignia associated with the Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry, a regiment that bore the feathers as part of its identity and paid for that identity at considerable cost between 1914 and 1918.

There are no maker's marks or hallmarks anywhere on the case. The condition is exceptional for its age: the brass retains a warm, bright tone with natural patina rather than heavy wear, the mechanism operates cleanly, and the badge is intact with no loss or damage. A piece that has survived remarkably well.

The Particulars:

  • Type: Vesta case, square form, push-button opening
  • Metal: Brass, warm golden tone with natural age patina
  • Badge: Applied silver-tone Prince of Wales feathers with Ich Dien scroll, permanently fixed, finely cast
  • Suspension: Loop at top of case for chain or lanyard attachment
  • Attribution: Consistent with Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry insignia, WWI era
  • Marks: None. No hallmarks or maker's stamps present.
  • Condition: Exceptional. Mechanism functions cleanly. Badge intact. Please review all photos carefully before purchasing.

A small carried object from a very large moment in history.

Arrives tucked inside its own treasure coffin and carefully wrapped as a vault relic, ready for gifting or keeping.

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