A SUPER RARE & ASTONISHING "QUEEN VICTORIA"
(NEW YEAR 1900) BOER WAR "FRY'S CHOCOLATE" BOX.
With it's original bars of chocolate & addressed 'sack cloth' packing cover.(probably cloth from an old kit bag)

Sent to Mrs Anne Sellwood at Purewell, Christchurch, Hampshire by her soldier son,
96868 Sgt WILLIAM JOSEPH SELLWOOD Royal Artillery.
who was "Dangerously Wounded" at Middlefontein on 25th January 1901 and later Died of Wounds three days later on 28th January 1901. It is a VERY rare situation when a soldier's name can be positively linked to an individual tin.

We also have colour copies of Sgt Sellwood's Papers & Medal Roll.

The sender Sgt Sellwood is entitled to a rare & superb SIX battle clasp Queen's South Africa Medal with clasps:

RELIEF of KIMBERLEY.
PAARDEBERG.
DRIEFONTEIN.
JOHANNESBURG.
DIAMOND HILL.
WITTERBERGEN.

DO YOU HAVE THIS MEDAL IN YOUR COLLECTION ??
(If so, please contact us straight away....thank you)











This is an astonishingly rare situation where not only has the tin survived in practically 'mint' condition, but also the full contents of "FRY's" Chocolate & it's original tissue wrappings are also intact AND the original & addressed sack cloth packing cover is here.

[THE HIGHLY PRIZED QUEEN's GIFT FOR THE NEW YEAR & A NEW CENTURY 1900]
Made by three still existing manufactures (Rowntree, Fry's & Cadbury) these chocolate boxes were a highly sought after item at the time and with this assembly you will also receive a colour copy of an original newspaper article which details what a soldier's response was when a reporter from the Daily News tried to buy a box for £2
( This was a small fortune in 1900 & represented about 40 days pay when a private soldier was on 1/- ( One Shilling / 5 new pence per day ) !

The reporter got "Short Shrift" from the Essex Regiment man concerned who said:
"I promised the ole woman ...& "Tain't because I couldn't do with the blimey thick 'uns (Gold Sovereigns) an----no it's the Old Lady's gift, and I might be buried without gittin' a medal, an' I've got this, and any 'ow, guv'nor, hopin' there's no offence, but I'll send it home"

This is a very emotive item as the family of Sgt Sellwood in Christchurch were clearly planning to eat the chocolate with their son when he returned home from the Boer war, but sadly he never came home and having lost him in the conflict they could not then contemplate eating the contents and preserved the uneaten tin of chocolates in his memory.

In forty years of dealing in high end and rare military items we've never seen anything like it !

"A TIME CAPSULE & A PRACTICALLY UNIQUE MUSEUM QUALITY SURVIVOR "

£995 (RESERVED) A.W.