Covers, in the main, ammunition pouches, holsters and pack equipment made from leather, canvas and, even, in some extreme cases, pressed paper and stiffened card. See The Emperor's coat by Rest, Ortner & Ilming.

These are the standard Wehrmacht issue from 1933 on, replacing the 1909 type which carried 60 rounds as opposed to 30 in the later model. In this case, one is a Berlin product, the other being made in Vienna - a regular 'anschluss'! Although they are not strictly a pair, they have obviously been together for some time.

This is the standard German leather harness for supporting ammunition pouches carried either side of the belt buckle on the leather waistbelt worn by all members of the armed forces, other ranks at any rate, including naval and Luftwaffe units in ground roles. There is a faint but legible RB number stamped on one of the forward leather straps.

This is perhaps one of the rarest of the Luftwaffe parachutes, as the earlier versions were in white rayon for the paratroopers and the goods. These would have been used in operations such as the supply of Stalingrad during the siege, and other Luftwaffe supply drops.

This is marked 'SRY' on the reverse for 'Surrey Yeomanry', with the maker's name 'Thomasson & Co.' stamped on the leather retaining strap. There is a broad arrow stamp, together with a faint date stamp (15?) to the inside. Both the MK 5 and 6 pistols would have fitted this.

This little device, 12cm long, would have held a lighted slow match for igniting cannon, powder charges or fireworks. The match was held in place by the silver hook on the short chain under the lid which has a model of a monkey eating a piece of fruit. Perhaps this is a souvenir from the Mutiny of 1857/8.

This type of shovel was standard issue in most armies in WW1. It was usually carried, with the grip hanging down, in a leather (or later, canvas) case with a belt loop. They were used primarily for entrenching at short notice and also for combat on trench raids, etc, when it was necessary to leave firearms behind.

This neat little gadget was bought together with a whole load of British officer's WW1 equipment. It measures miles and kilometers (on a large scale map, I suspect) and still functions, after a fashion, though the wheel is stiff and probably needs oilling with a fine machine oil. The compass on the other side works nicely.

Marked: 'Frostschutsssalbe // Wehrkreissanitarspack VI // Osnabruck // SS-Packung', also with 'Leere Tuben sammeln' ('collect the empty tubes' - the original recyclers!), this stuff was used to protect the lips and nose from the cold and possibly, in extreme conditions, the feet and hands. It would have been most useful on the Russian Front.

This is a piece straight from the Raj! The 'I' with a broad arrow stamp dates it as a post-Mutiny piece from the era when the British government acquired control of India from the East India Company on the basis that they had failed to foresee, let alone successfully contain, the Mutiny, which British troops were needed to suppress.

These calipers, for measuring the circumference of wire and rope, are made of boxwood and brass. The maker's name (as above) is stamped into the piece along with the calibration and there is a small handpunched broad arrow at the base, indicating a Royal Navy issue item.