A scarce E.VII.R. large bronze Sea Gallantry Medal awarded to Boatswain R. J. Jones, White...

A scarce E.VII.R. large bronze Sea Gallantry Medal awarded to Boatswain R. J. Jones, White Star Line, who plunged into the River Mersey in 1902 in an attempt to rescue an unconscious man, and was further decorated with a small silver Sea Gallantry Medal in 1908 following a repeat act of bravery in the mid-Atlantic Board of Trade Medal for Gallantry in Saving Life at Sea, E.VII.R., large, bronze (Robert Joseph Jones. S.S. “Cymric” 5th. September 1902.) in original fitted case of issue, minor attempt to pierce reverse at 12 o’clock to facilitate a loop suspension, otherwise extremely fine £500-£700 --- Only 23 E.VII.R. large bronze medals were awarded prior to the small medal being instituted in 1904. Robert Joseph Jones was awarded the bronze Sea Gallantry Medal for attempting to save the life of Able Seaman David Jones of Bootle who was employed in the shore gang of the White Star Steamship Company. Anchored at New Brighton, the steamship Cymric was just hours away from leaving for New York and both men were making preparations for the embarkation of 1400 passengers and crew. The Dundee Evening Post of 6 September 1902 gives further details: 'Intrepid Boatswain. A very sad affair occurred in the Mersey yesterday afternoon, involving the loss of two lives. At 2.30 the crew of the White Star liner Cymric were engaged in boat drill when one of the lifeboats, in being swung out upon the davits, struck a sailor and knocked him into the river. The man was evidently unconscious, and his body was being rapidly swept away by a strong ebb tide, when Robert Jones, boatswain of the Cymric, plunged into the river to the rescue. Boats were also lowered from the Cymric and the tender Magnetic. Another sailor also jumped in to assist the boatswain in supporting their shipmate's unconscious form. The two rescuers reached a rope thrown to them, but the force of the tide compelled them to let go of their burden, and the body at once sank. The tide also swept away the second sailor, who was lost to sight in a moment. The boatswain, Robert Jones, who has been instrumental in saving six lives whilst with the White Star Line, was picked up in an exhausted condition, but was able to sail in the Cymric. The bodies of the two men who drowned have not been seen since.’ Despite this close-call, Jones remained in service aboard Cymric as boatswain. Six years later his name was published in The Liverpool Journal of Commerce when he was decorated with the Silver Board of Trade Medal for Gallantry after participating in the rescue of the survivors of the St. Cuthbert of Liverpool, which was abandoned on fire in the North Atlantic Ocean on 3 February 1908. In common with other sailors involved in this rescue, Jones likely also received the Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners Royal Benevolent Society silver medal and the bronze medal of the Humane Society of Massachusetts.