A relic of Sir John Franklin's last expedition 1845-48. Two brass Royal Navy uniform buttons found in the grave of Lieutenant John Irving, Irving Bay, King William Island by the Schwatka Search Expedition 1878-79. One has a piece of blue cloth attached.

John Irving was the fourth son of John Irving, Writer to the Signet, was born in Edinburgh on 8 February 1815. He was trained at the Royal Naval College, Portsmouth where he was awarded the second mathematical prize. After serving for a few years in the Navy, he left in 1837 and emigrated to New South Wales. Six years later he returned to the United Kingdom and rejoined the Navy. He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on 23 March 1843, serving in ‘Volage’ and ‘Excellent’ during the 1840s. He was one of the three lieutenants on HMS ‘Terror’.