Officer’s Pouch, Victorian

The pouch worn by officers of the 10th Hussars was distinctive for being black patent leather, embellished with silver and gilt metalwork rather than gold lace and embroidery. The belt followed the same idea being made up of a metal chain pattern. In this photo the pouch has been laid on the front of the belt and the chain pattern can be seen on the right. The chains and pickers were also distinctive in the shape of the boss having a lion’s head and the pickers sheathed behind a rococo shield. The design on the pouch was Queen Victoria’s cypher with the Prince of Wales’s Plume superimposed. The coronet on the feathers is usually gilt but in this example the gilding has faded. The crown above the cypher is the guelphic type. Around the edge of the pouch flap is a gilt laurel wreath. The 10th Hussars wore this type of chainy belt from c1824 onwards, in both dress and undress.

Regimental Details | Sabretaches and Pouchbelts