Chauvel Campaign Chest: A Piece of Australian Military History

The Chauvel campaign chest, an Anglo-Indian teak and brass bound campaign chest, circa 1870, property of Captain (later Major) C.G.T. Chauvel, 35th Regiment the rectangular top with brass corners above four long drawers with reeded decoration and brass handles, with iron carrying handles to the sides, in two sections, on iron castors, the top section inscribed 'Capt. CGT Chauvel 35th Regiment, No 10', the lower section inscribed 'Capt Chauvel, No 11', 29.53 in. wide, 13.78 in. deep, 35.83 in. high. provenance: Private Collection Sydney Note: This important campaign chest with direct links to Australian military history was sourced from the property of Captain C. Chauvel, an old Indian army man, whom along with other members of the Chauvel family settled at Tabulam Station on the northern rivers district of NSW in the 1880's. In 1885 the Chauvel family responded to potential Russian threats and in true patriotic fervour formed the two troops of the Upper Clarence Light Horse, No 1 (Tabulam) and No 2 (Border). On 1 January 1886 celebrations were held at McLeans Hotel Tabulam with the swearing in of 129 men and subsequent banquet toasting the Queen, with the Chauvel family presiding. This was to form the nucleus of what was to become the famous Australian Light Horse, which first served during the great Shearer's and Barrier Miner's strike of the 1890's, with later service in the Boer War (1889-1902). It was the sport of these horsemen to engage in Emu chasing on the western plains with the trophy emu feathers being worn in their hats. This is the image that is now synonymous with the Anzac legend. The Chauvel family continued to have important links with the Australian Light Horse. Harry Chauvel was to become General and president over the last great cavalry charge in military history with the taking of Beersheba in 1917 during the desert campaign in Palestine. A nephew of General Chauvel, Charles Chauvel, was to become the filmmaker who directed 'Forty Thousand Horsemen'

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Provenance - A term used to describe the provable history of an antique or work of art, and thus an additional aid to verifying its authenticity. Provenance can have an inflating effect on the price of an item, particularly if the provenance relates to the early settlement of Australia, a famous person, or royalty. Less significant are previous sales of the item through an auction house or dealer.
Reeding - A series of parallel, raised convex mouldings or bands, in section resembling a series of the letter 'm'. The opposite form of fluting, with which it is sometimes combined. Reeding is commonly found on chair legs, either turned or straight, on the arms and backs of chairs and couches and around table edges in the Neoclassical or Classical Revival manner. Reeding was also used as a form of decoration during the Edwardian period, but it is usually much shallower and evidently machine made.
Campaign Furniture - Most of the campaign furniture on the market is associated with the time of the British Empire in the 18th and 19th centuries when there was a high demand from military officers, administrators and colonists.

Campaign furniture is demountable, through clever use of wooden screws and sometimes metal hinges, so that it can disassembled and then packed into lots of manageable size for ease of movement by ship or animal between postings or camps.
Castors - Wheels, fitted especially to chair legs, couches, tables and some smaller pieces of furniture, to enable them to be easily moved about. The earliest castors were of brass, with shanks fitting into the base of the leg, and the wheels often made of leather. In the late 18th century, brass 'bucket' or 'cup' castors were introduced, either rounded or square, fitting directly over the end of the leg and held in place with screws. The wheels were generally solid brass. Bucket/cup castors continued in use throughout the 19th century and indeed are still made today. In the later 19th century wheels were sometimes made of wood, china, either white or brown, and sometimes of steel.
Circa - A Latin term meaning 'about', often used in the antique trade to give an approximate date for the piece, usually considered to be five years on either side of the circa year. Thus, circa 1900 means the piece was made about 1900, probably between 1895 and 1905. The expression is sometimes abbreviated to c.1900.

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