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For your consideration, you are viewing a WWII British General Civilian Respirator. Manufactured by C E & CO LTD. This is a LARGE size and would have been issued to a male, as it is accompanied by the original cardboard box as well as a tin storage box. #BRITISH GENERAL CIVILIAN RESPIRATOR was issued to every civilian by the government in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Civilians were legally required to have theirs within reach at all times, This particular type of respirator was issued to the General Public (Adults and Children) before and during WWII. The black facepiece is made of flexible thin sheet rubber, with a sight window that provides vision by a thin non-flammable celluloid sheet that was stitched into place. The stitching was a structural weakness in the respirators' design however this flaw was rectified in 1940. It was feared that it would seep through the stitch holes on the front, so the solution was to apply latex around the stitched areas to create an air-proof seal. The inhaled air is drawn in through the container, and the exhaled air is prevented from passing back by a simple non-return valve, a rubber disc attached to the inner end of the container. The exhaled air forces its way out by lifting the thin rubber of the face piece at its edges so that a separate outlet valve is unnecessary. The mask later developed to have an exhale valve, in the form of a 'flutter type' valve. Some of these masks had a prefilter which was a green part that stuck out on the filter. These were issued in four sizes - SMALL, MEDIUM, LARGE and EXTRA LARGE. Commercial and cottage industry manufacturers started producing a large variety of bags, cases, boxes and tins to hold civilian respirators and for ladies, there were a variety of specially-designed handbags that included a space at the bottom of the bag, so that you could safely carry and store it with you. PROVENANCE: Museum Exhibit from the private collection of the late Doug Bradbury's Estate, formally exhibited in the Bradbury's Private "UK Horseshoeing Museum" at Clay Cross #Doug Bradbury FWCF (1937 - 2020) was a lifelong resident of Clay Cross in England and from this modest heritage, Bradbury became internationally known as a "Master Farrier." The great-grandfather set up his farriery and forge in Clay Cross and later opened a private museum dedicated to the farriery craft, known as the "UK Horseshoeing Museum" Doug Bradbury was headed for a career underground in the Parkhouse Colliery in his home village of Clay Cross. “It was either down the pit or in the army,” Doug learned to shoe underground in a coal mine, His family expressed: “Doug is known worldwide, and has travelled to many faraway countries to help teach farriers and or to shoe horses on assignment. In 2002 Doug retired at age 65 and was able to dedicate more time to the museum. The museum attracted horse people from far and wide. The Museum has many interesting collections relating to military farriery in both World Wars, the exhibits cover all the special needs of horses working the streets, and mines, and tasks that required special traction, such as ice and snow or maneuvering through deep mud in bogs. Bradbury was granted the title of Member of the British Empire (MBE) in recognition of his services to the farriery profession by Queen Elizabeth II, who announced "Doug Bradbury is far from inactive; he has transformed the old forge offices into a carefully-curated museum of farrier history, known as the UK Horseshoeing Museum, and offers colourful and interesting “The Life of a Farrier” lectures to groups across the British Isles." In 2018, Doug was awarded an MBE for his services to the farrier profession also presented to him in May 2018 by HRH Princess Royal at Buckingham Palace. CONDITION: This British Civilian Respirator is Vintage WWII era, used, and in good condition for its age and use. This comes with its original cardboard box, the box is tattered and discoloured with age, as well as a Tin that has lost most of its khaki finish and the writing is barely visible, however, the respirator itself appears to have been rarely used, and looks clean, the rubberised black fabric is a little dusty and slightly faded, but has no rips, tears or structural damage. The print is faded, All the straps are tightly attached, and fairly clean with only a couple of rust spot marks on the cotton webbing straps, and all the stitching is tight and unbroken. # Please note: The Photographs form part of the description; Super-sized photos can show the finer details and conditions.- Photos do not show the actual size so please read the description page to get the exact measurements.
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- WEIGHT: 923 gm. approximately unpacked. (the mask, box and the tin altogether)
- HEIGHT: MASK: 24 cm / 9.44" Not including straps TIN BOX: 11.5 cm / 4.52" BOX: 11 cm / 4.33"
- WIDTH: MASK: 23 cm / 9.05" TIN BOX: 18.5 cm / 7.28" BOX: 17.5 cm / 6.88"
- DEPTH: MASK: 12 cm / 4.72" TIN BOX: 12.5 cm / 4.92" BOX: 13.5 cm / 5.31"