Genuine WW1 1914 Princess Mary Christmas Tin with Rare Officers Silver Topped Pencil and Slotted Retaining Card

Here on offer is a genuine WW1 1914 Princess Mary Christmas tin that still contains its original rare silver topped pencil, retained in its slotted card.

This tin is in excellent undamaged condition retaining all its fine detail and it now has a polished brass finish. The lid hinge still works as originally designed and there are some light dents on the base of the tin.

The surface of the lid depicts the head of Princess Mary in the centre, surrounded by a laurel wreath and flanked on either side by the 'M' monogram.

At the top, a decorative cartouche contains the words 'Imperium Britannicum' with a sword and scabbard either side.

On the lower edge, another cartouche contains the words 'Christmas 1914', which is flanked by the bows of battleships forging through a heavy sea.

In the corners, small roundels house the names of the Allies: Belgium, Japan, Montenegro and Servia; France and Russia are at the edges, each superimposed on three furled flags or standards.

This tin still contains a fine example of the officer’s “bullet” pencil, being a silver topped pencil holder that is stamped “STERLING SILVER” still with its original pencil.

The silver holder fits tightly into a brass shell casing that is etched with the Crown and “M” for Princess Mary. There are also military ordinance marks on the base of the bullet, which date it to 1914.

What is also very unusual and rare with this tin is the fact it still retains the slotted card insert that holds the “bullet” pencil in place.

Although not obvious at the time due to the gilding on the outside, there were two grades of brass used in the production of these tins, the higher quality brass being generally reserved for tins given to officers, which I believe this example was for.

Originally, the standard tins contained a packet of cigarettes and a packet of pipe tobacco, together with a Christmas 1914 card and a photo of Princess Mary in an envelope, but there were several variations in contents including a bar of chocolate, sweets, or packets of spices (for Indian troops); and a pad of paper and a silver tipped “bullet” pencil for officers, and sometimes another card with a Christmas message and photos of King & Queen.

The tin measures 13cm wide, 8.5cm high and 3cm deep, weighing 152g with the bullet pencil.

It is rare to find a tin still with its original pencil and retaining card.

The silver pencils on their own are fetching over £100.

Please see my pictures for the details of the condition, which complement this description.

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Thank you for taking the time to look.

Code: 52015