Berndorfer WWI shell case silver and copper inlays engraved Islamic motifs

[John R Blair Jr]

Berndorfer WWI shell case silver and copper inlays engraved Islamic motifs

Salutations:
No apologies for lack of participation here at BOCN because as stated before Im an opportunistic ordnance collector; which means I seldom have any thing to offer. So; now to gloat a bit!!! I will do an estate sale IF I see something in the previews, and upon an second or third look through I saw some umbrellas in a stand in a very poor photo that maybe just maybe could be a shell; a VERY large shell with some work done on the surface perhaps. This shell and two others were in the house and the rest is history (pun intended)!
BERNDORF 1911 300 and a very tiny (1/8) crescent(?) moon over a M
56cm - 15.25cm - 17cm
Absolutely slathered head to toe in silver and copper inlays and engraved with Islamic decorative motifs!!!
Any one venture an translation?

Semper fi
John

A Comparative:
http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/30082816
This First World War period shell case has been worked into an engraved tobacco jar by Turkish prisoners of war in the Middle East. The body of the jar is made from a British 13 Pounder shell case. The 13 Pounder light field gun was the standard equipment of Royal Horse Artillery. RHA Batteries took part in the campaigns in Sinai and Palestine, and also in the Mesopotamia campaign. This particular shell case serves to highlight the truly world-wide scale of the Great War as the markings on its base indicate that it was produced in Canada in July 1916. Once the shell had been fired, the spent case was evidently passed to a Turkish prisoner possessed of considerable metal-working skills. It is elaborately engraved with Islamic decorative motifs. These consist of two prominent bands encircling the case with, above, below and between them, ornate cartouches containing intricate arabesque motifs and calligraphy. Certain portions of the design are enhanced with an 'inlay' of copper and silver wire. There are some areas where this has fallen away, revealing that these soft metals were simply hammered onto small indentations punched into the brass of the shell case.
History note
Tobacco Jar made from a German cartridge case and decorated by a Turkish prisoner of war.

 

[Alpini]

Interesting case - it should be for german made (Krupp) naval quick firing gun L/45. Turkey got some ships with this gun from the german empire. Can you please measure the exact lengt in mm, this would be very interesting?

 

[John R Blair Jr]

Alpini:
561.975mm
Welcome
John

 

[bdgreen]

Very nice find!

You mentioned other shell casings, did you get them also? If so what were they? Curiosity at work here!

Brian

 

[John R Blair Jr]

PDPs 403 1917 flaming bomb 37-85 carved in flowers 3.5 X 1.75 and a large 18’’ by 3 or 4’’ (flared vase type mouth art turned into lamp) unable/unwilling to dismantle; got all for $85

My poor research so far:

http://www.bocn.co.uk/vbforum/threa...s-engraved-Islamic-motifs?p=234007#post234007
150mm M13 - German 15 sFH13

Berndorfer Metallwaren Fabrik
http://www.kaisersbunker.com/cc/cc11.htm
http://www.navyingallipoli.com/heavy_a.html
150 mm L/40 quick firing guns, Krupp
http://www.turkeyswar.com/warship-asaritevfik.html
http://www.network54.com/Forum/3303...ttoman-Turkish+Artillery+inventory,+1900-1945

Acquired before WW1:
18 pieces 15cm Haubitze L/14 Krupp, 1905-08, 12 left by 1914

Received during WW1 from the Central Powers:
?? pieces 15cm schwere Feldhaubitze 13 L/14 and L17
12? pieces 15cm Feldhaubitze 14 Skoda

15cm L/40 Krupp SK

15cm L/14 Krupp Hb

15cm L/14 H
150 mm L/26 Krupp Date of production: 1870's
[h=1]150 mm L/45 Vickers Naval Gun Date of production: 1901[/h][h=1]http://www.gallipoli.com.tr/silent_witnesses/mesudiye_turgut_reis_karanlik_limani_guns_canakkale.htm[/h][h=1][/h]
150 mm L/45 gun from Mesudiye battleship
http://www.navyingallipoli.com/heavy_a.html
Caliber
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_Navy
http://www.navyingallipoli.com/o_battleships.html

In 1910, the Ottoman Navy purchased two pre-dreadnought battleships from Germany: SMS Weissenburg and her sister ship SMS Kurfrst Friedrich Wilhelm. These ships were renamed Turgut Reis and Barbaros Hayreddin, respectively.
The Italo-Turkish War of 1911–1912 and the Balkan Wars of 1912–13 were disastrous for the Ottoman Empire. In the former, the Italians managed to occupy Ottoman Tripolitania (present-day Libya) and the Dodecanese Islands in the Aegean Sea. In the latter, a smaller Greek fleet successfully engaged with Ottoman battleships at the naval skirmishes of Elli and Lemnos. The better condition of the Greek fleet in the Aegean Sea during the Balkan Wars led to the liberation of all Ottoman-held Aegean islands, other than those in the Italian-occupied Dodecanese. It also prevented Ottoman reinforcements and supplies to the land battles on the Balkan peninsula, where the Balkan League emerged victorious. The only Ottoman naval successes during the Balkan Wars were the raiding actions of the light cruiser Hamidiye under the command of Rauf Orbay.
In the aftermath of the Balkan Wars, the Ottomans remained engaged in a dispute over the sovereignty of the North Aegean islands with Greece. A naval race ensued in 1913–1914, with the Ottoman government ordering large dreadnought battleships like Sultn Osmn-ı Evvel (the largest dreadnought battleship ever built) and Reşadiye with the aforementioned public donations made to the Ottoman Navy Foundation. However, despite full payment for both battleships, and the arrival of the Turkish delegation to Britain for collecting them after the completion of their sea trials, they were confiscated by the United Kingdom at the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914 and renamed as HMS Agincourt and HMS Erin. This caused considerable ill-feeling towards Britain among the Ottoman public, and the German Empire took advantage of the situation by sending the battlecruiser SMS Goeben and light cruiser SMS Breslau which entered service in the Ottoman Navy as Yavz Sultn Selm and Midilli, respectively. This event significantly contributed to the Porte's decision of entering the First World War on the side of the Central Powers.

 

[bdgreen]

Very nice and a great buy. Sounds like the small casing is a French 37mm.

Brian

 

[John R Blair Jr]

The Photo (non-copyrighted) that clued me in:

 

[John R Blair Jr]

And... I did a rubbing of one of the cartouches; I see now just how impossible it would be to translate the old Ottoman Turk (ended 1928?), but I was hoping to find a date and then transpose some supposition onto this work from study of naval history!


Thank you for your views and help!
Semper fi
John

 

[Hoeksel]

I know, very old thread, but I hope the shell case is still in your possession and you read my request. For identification I would like to know the rim diameter measured very accurately, as 170 mm is a rim diameter I cannot identify.

I suspect the actual rim diameter is 176 mm. Could you verify?

 

[John R Blair Jr]

Update:
Very interesting to the mystery of this shell case:
Dear Mr. Blair,

I'm afraid I will not be able to offer you much help. I am a historian of late Ottoman and modern Turkish army. I am not good at Naval matters and items. So, I have nothing to add about the shell.

Reference to writings on it, they are not in Ottoman Turkish. They are Arabic. My Arabic is poor, but they look like religious verses. For example, the one at the top (قتافيا الحجا ) means "go on pilgrimage". As you know pilgrimage (hajj) to Mecca and Medina is one of the five pillars of Islam.

As far as I understand this shell is not a war souvenir but a pilgrimage one. A pilgrim purchased it most probably in Mecca or Medina.

I hope this helps

Cheers

Mesut (last name redacted)

 

[John R Blair Jr]

Update:
Very interesting to the mystery of this shell case:
Dear Mr. Blair,

I'm afraid I will not be able to offer you much help. I am a historian of late Ottoman and modern Turkish army. I am not good at Naval matters and items. So, I have nothing to add about the shell.

Reference to writings on it, they are not in Ottoman Turkish. They are Arabic. My Arabic is poor, but they look like religious verses. For example, the one at the top (قتافيا الحجا ) means "go on pilgrimage". As you know pilgrimage (hajj) to Mecca and Medina is one of the five pillars of Islam.

As far as I understand this shell is not a war souvenir but a pilgrimage one. A pilgrim purchased it most probably in Mecca or Medina.

I hope this helps

Cheers

Mesut (last name redacted)

081. A MONUMENTAL DECORATED ARTILLERY SHELL CASING BY THE BEZALEL SCHOOL | J Greenstein

jgreenstein.com