The truth is in there: Analysis of grave relics to help solve a mystery linked to the loss of the HMAS Sydney II

Abstract

In February 1942, three months after the HMAS Sydney II sank off the coast of Western Australia, taking with it all 645 crew members, the unidentified body of a man washed ashore in a Carley float on Christmas Island. The body was buried and two eyewitness accounts of the situation recorded. A 2006 recovery mission to find the grave site and give the unknown sailor a proper burial was successful. Relics found in the original grave included four somewhat degraded and corroded press-studs–the only remaining components of the sailor’s clothing. These relics were accessioned into the Australian War Memorial’s collection. Analysis of some of the press-studs was conducted in an attempt to help determine who this sailor may have been, or whether he was likely to have been from the HMAS Sydney II. Elemental and molecular analyses using a range of instrumental techniques including X-ray fluorescence (XRF), Scanning Electron Microscopy-Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), X-ray tomography, Raman spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) have been conducted in conjunction with the Australian Federal Police and Australian National University. Strong evidence for an inscription on one of the press-studs and a blue colourant from fragments of fabric preserved within the press-studs have been revealed.