Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Crimea 1854-56, 1 clasp, Sebastopol (R. Bunce, Cooper’s Crew, H.M.S. Firebrand.) an officially impressed later issue, good very fine £120-160

Provenance: Captain K. J. Douglas-Morris Collection, DNW, October 1996.

Richard Bunce was born in Devonport in 1833 and joined the Royal Navy as a Volunteer in H.M.S. Firebrand at Lisbon on 29 March 1853, having previously served in the Merchant Navy. He served in the Firebrand during the bombardment of Sebastopol, and was discharged on 15 May 1855 to the ‘Civil Power, Malta’. He finally received his Crimea Medal nearly 40 years later on 22 June 1893 (ADM 171/26 refers).

Note: Medal officially impressed in the style in use at the time (the same style as used for the East and West Africa Medal 1887-1900). Such later issues provide the only means of obtaining officially named medals to ships that otherwise received unnamed awards.