I’ve had this piece for a very long time. It’s part of a very large collection of relics amassed by my great uncle. When he was still able to walk through fields for hours on his own, he would spend a good deal of his spare time metal detecting in the local area. Living right in the centre of ‘Bomb Alley’ as it was known, he now has a sizable collection built up in his shed. This includes a large plastic bucket filled to the brim with pieces with shrapnel, shell fragments, fired bullets… and aircraft components.

This was one of two Spitfire pieces given to me for a school show and tell project, along with various other bits and bobs. The other was a small piece of canopy frame, with the green paint fully intact on the outside. And then there’s this, which I was allowed to keep.
I’d really appreciate any info on this, given it’s been with me for some time. I unfortunately have no idea exactly which crash site it was recovered from, and so can’t pin it to a specific aircraft. The closest I can get is Fordcombe, which is where I’m told the crash site was.

The markings are as follows, in light of picture quality.
Front side: ‘MARK IB*’ ‘No 3431/41′
Reverse: ‘JF’

If any information can be gleaned from these markings, I’d be happy to hear it. This relic was clearly involved in a very violent crash, having been found apart from the rest of the gauge assembly. The chances of matching it to a known aircraft are next to none, but I thought you’d all appreciate this little fragment of history.

Regards, B.B.