Collection of Bath Star police rank insignia 1960 - 1980
Name/Title
Collection of Bath star police rank insignia 1960 - 1980
Entry/Object ID
2343
Description
Collection of 36 Chrome plated Bath Star Insignia, 2 of which are still attached to material cut from uniform, each in the form of a star bearing the words "Tri Iuncta In Uno"
Use
For use on police uniform to determine rank
Context
The British police followed the example of the military and use Bath Stars or "pips" to designate rank. Though there have been some changes over the years, the standard insignia for an inspector are two Bath Stars and for a chief inspector three. They are also used as part of the rank insignia for more senior officers, such as a chief superintendent, along with a crown and for a deputy chief constable along with crossed tip staves within a laurel wreath.
The latin inscription relates to the Order of the Bath and translates as "Three joined in one".
Metal examples such as these are still used on dress tunics and in the past were used on shirt epaulettes in Sussex Police until they were replaced by embroidered versions, in the mid 1990s.
These were collected by a ex superintendent who served in East Sussex Constabulary and Sussex Constabulary/Sussex Police and could have been used in any of these forces.
