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Remembered Today:

LZ85 ? Any ideas - found on an identity tag


Jim Strawbridge

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I have a rather nice, engraved, unofficial identity tag. The centre is engraved RE and around it L. SMITH (above) and WES. 138057 LZ85 (below).   This identifies it as having belonged to 138057  SJT.  LEONARD SMITH. ROYAL ENGINEERS.  WES = WESLEYAN (his religion) but I have been racking my brain as to what the LZ85 refers.  Any ideas ? 

DSCF9052.JPG

Edited by Jim Strawbridge
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Only thing that comes to mind is Zeppelin LZ85 that was shot down near Salonika in May 1915. Might be made from a piece of salvage?

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6 hours ago, Ron da Valli said:

Only thing that comes to mind is Zeppelin LZ85 that was shot down near Salonika in May 1915. Might be made from a piece of salvage?

My thoughts also

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LZ85 souvenir seems to be the answer - they are certainly a prolific item. Below is an amusing IWM photo "NZ Army Medical Corps recover souvenirs from the German LZ85 airship." and illustrates the feverish interest in the feverish marshes of the Vadar River following LZ85's demise.  I recall one Canadian doctor even drowned souvenir hunting but will stand corrected on that.

There's a typically fascinating GWF thread on LZ75 GWF chum ZeppRaider ...... "LZ75 - Salonika Zeppelin" which concludes with a nice selection of similarly themed post crash souvenirs. 

IWM - NZ Army Medical Corps recover souvenirs from the German LZ85 airship..jpg

Edited by TullochArd
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He had no overseas service before 1916, so if it is salvage it seems unlikely he salvaged it himself.

Charlie

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Presumably a trinket smelted from the aluminium airframe of the Zeppelin.

Could also possibly be from the naval airship L45 known as “Zeppelin de Laragne” (LZ85) which came down in the French Alps after a raid on England in October 1917. The later date would fit the timeline better - do we know for sure where Sgt Smith got posted (i.e. was he ever in Salonika, or washis overseas service in France/Belgium?).

MB

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Yes charlie2 - unlikely he salvaged it himself for the reason you state.  BWM/BVM only. LZ85 was shot down on 5th May 1916.  The wreckage was moved to and partially reconstructed as a display near the White Tower and remained there for a several years.  The LZ85 trade in souvenirs to visitors remained brisk throughout the War although this one seems to ooze an informal British military provenance.

Edited by TullochArd
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5 hours ago, TullochArd said:

Yes charlie2 - unlikely he salvaged it himself for the reason you state.

The reasoning for my statement was that I believed the date LZ85 came down was in 1915 as stated in previous posts and I didn‘t check their accuracy. As May 1916 is the correct date it is quite possible that he salvaged the metal himself.

Charlie

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Thank you, all. You have led me up an avenue I didn't expect. On rehandling the item, I believe that it is made of aluminium so it all makes sense.

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