Bidspirit auction | Palestine - ”NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL

Palestine - ”NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL CORPS PALESTINE 1914 1917” Engraved Token on Egyptian 10 Piastres Coin - An official Egyptian 10 Piastres coin dated 1916, hand engraved and repurposed as a commemorative token by Sergeant S.H. Cowan of the New Zealand Medical Corps, serving in Palestine as part of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (E.E.F.) during World War I. One side of the coin was smoothed and finely engraved with the classical medical symbol - a serpent entwined around a staff, surrounded by a laurel wreath and topped with the British royal crown. Around the edge appears the inscription: ”SGT. S.H. COWAN PALESTINE NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL CORPS 1914 1917” This token was likely a personal souvenir or informal identification tag belonging to Sgt. Cowan, who served with the New Zealand Medical Corps in Egypt and Palestine during the later stages of the war. The reverse retains the original Arabic design of the 1916 Egyptian 10 Piastres coin, dated 1335 AH. Material: Silver Diameter: 30 mm Weight: 12.654 g A rare and historically significant piece combining military and medical heritage, reflecting the New Zealand forces’ service in the Middle East under the British led Egyptian Expeditionary Force during World War I.