Whistle Down The Wind

Had a sort out of more stuff in the loft this afternoon, and came across these two whistles. Made by the same company but there is probably some 25 years between them. They will also have blown in very different circumstances. The older one (marked 1915) could have been used to signal the launch of an attack on the Western Front - the moment when the troops would rise up out of the trenches to go over the top. The newer whistle is marked A.R.P. and would have been used in the event of an air raid during WW2. Presumably as a warning or possibly to reinforce a command - “put that bloody light out!”
I’m not sure if they have a family connection as Mrs C’s father used to buy and sell all sorts of antiques. But her grandfather did serve in France during WW1 and was an Air Raid Warden in WW2, so it is possible these were his whistles. And on that basis, we are hanging on to them.
But there was quite a lot of old jewellery and memorabilia that has no obvious connection to either of our families. This has all been boxed up and I will take it to a local shop that deals in all sorts of ephemera and offers a free valuation service. It may be the items are of interest to collectors or it may just be a case of weighing in the gold and silver for scrap.
Either way, it’s a bit more out of the house, an interesting afternoon looking through stuff and - possibly - a bit of cash to treat ourselves with.