WW1 ashtray was made from brass salvaged from HMAS Australia

Circular ashtray with five grooves shaped into the rim for resting cigarettes. Around the rim are impressed the words 'METAL FROM/H.M.A.S. AUSTRALIA/FIRST FLAGSHIP/ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY/1913-1920'. There is an impressed image of HMAS Australia inside the base of the ashtray, which has been partially erased by constant polishing.

This ashtray was made from brass salvaged from the battlecruiser HMAS Australia I. Commissioned in 1913 as the flagship of the newly formed Royal Australian Navy, HMAS Australia was scuttled in 1924 under the terms of the Washington Peace Treaty. Before she was sunk, most of the fittings were removed and various souvenirs, such as this ashtray, were fashioned from the material.

Code: 1191