I am indebted to Roger Miles for sharing these images of two ARP badges issued by the Glasgow Corporation Gas Department. Following on from a recent blog, these badges also include the character Mr Therm.
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A nice ARP badge of a design I had not seen before. The character on this badge is Mr Therm. The character was created by Eric Fraser for the Gas, Light & Coke Company in 1931. Mr. Therm appeared on many badges, publications and other material related to the gas industry and finally disappeared in the 1960s.
The ARP badge is currently on eBay. A minor conundrum has cropped up regarding the silver VA A.R.P. badge. There are two companies that use the VA monogram - Vickers-Armstrong (aircraft manufacture) and Vickers-Armstrongs (ship-building). There's a distinct difference between the two as shown from the BAE/Vickers (Aviation Department) Limited website:
Vickers-Armstrong Limited during 1928, Vickers (Aviation Department) Ltd was formed into an official aircraft company under the name Vickers Aviation Limited. This was only temporary however, as months later they became involved in a merger with the heavy engineering (i.e. non-aviation) interests of the Armstrong Whitworth Development Company. A new company emerged as Vickers-Armstrong Ltd, the 's' being removed from the name to differentiate it from Vickers-Armstrongs Ltd, the group's ship building activities in the North of England. Becoming somewhat scarce these days, the Bomb Reconnaissance sleeve insignia and armband for the Bomb Reconnaissance Officer appeared on eBay. The armband sold for £95 (plus shipping) which was a good price for someone and the sleeve badge reached £125 which was way above my estimate.
A few British dominions issued ARP badges in a design similar to that issued in the UK. Examples are known from Hong Kong, Kenya, Straits Settlements and this one for Malta. The rear looks like it was intended as a cap badge. A scarce item and sure to generate interest on eBay where it is currently up for sale.
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