Original U.S. WWI 124th Field Artillery 33rd Division Engraved M1910 Mess Kit Trench Art with “Monkey Meat” “Corned Willy” Army Chow List & Travel Diary - Christian L. Hansen
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Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. This is an outstanding original M1910 mess kit decorated as a piece of trench art by the soldier who carried it through France. The soldier is identified as Private Christian L. Hansen, Supply Company, 124th Field Artillery Regiment, 33rd Division, by his serial number, 2115162, and initials, C.L.H.. Hansen decorated his mess kit with crossed cannons, his unit, the battles he participated in, and a travel diary of where he traveled and when. The back of the lid has a fantastic list of “Army Chow” to include “Monkey Meat” and “Corned Willy”. This is an outstanding set!
The mess kit retains all three utensils inside, though the knife’s blade is heavily oxidized and pitted. It is marked RIA 1917, while the fork and spoon are both marked WB/W 1918. The mess kit itself is dated 1918 by WB/W, but the pull ring is missing from the lid, often the first piece of these to go from age and wear.
The battles listed include the ARGONNE MEUSE DRIVE, MOUNT-SECT. DRIVE, and VERDUN. The back of the lid lists ARMY CHOW including CORNED WILLY, MONKEY MEAT, GOLDFISH, SLUM, HARDTACK, HASH, BEANS, OLEO, SOUP, PRUNES, and COFFEE, a great bit of soldier humor.
The bowl portion is just the travel diary of places he visited.
This is an excellent set well-identified to Christian L. Hansen, who was from Hale, Missouri and was originally a replacement soldier, arriving in France in June 1918 and being transferred to the 124th Field Artillery, 33rd Division, seeing heavy combat before returning home in May 1919.
As a named artifact, this mess kit preserves several different layers of a WWI soldier’s experience in a single object. The 2115162 / C.L.H. identification, 124th Field Artillery references, Mont Sec and Meuse-Argonne inscriptions, engraved itinerary, period-dated utensils, and humorous Army food vocabulary collectively provide unusually direct evidence of how Christian L. Hansen chose to record and remember his service in France.
For a collection focused on the 33rd Division, American field artillery, U.S. trench art, or the everyday experience of the American Expeditionary Forces, this is an exceptionally evocative and thoroughly personalized WWI grouping.
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