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I found this inert shell decades ago at a garage sale in New Brunswick, Canada and finally got around to cleaning it up. I'm not really well versed in the various marks on it, but I've attached some pictures with the hope that someone on the forum could provide us with some information on it.

It weighs 27.6 lbs and I think it might be WWI era. It is 13.25 inches tall and 4.5 inches in diameter. It also has stamped on the body SF4765U and above the U there is an arrow pointing up. Lower on the shell there is an STS under the T there is a line and then a W. A little lower there is CN. On the bottom it has stamped on it S.E. CO 17.6.18 and above it is 45 HR IX or TX and then NO. Any help would be much appreciated. I can provide more pics if necessary

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  • Hi and welcome! It's pretty hard to make out the markings on the bottom of the shell from that picture. Can you provide a clearer picture, or summarize what you see there? You may find that lighting from the side will put the markings into relief. Part of the marking looks like a date but hard to discern. "17 • ? • 18"
    – AllInOne
    Apr 27, 2020 at 18:18
  • Thanks Craig. Please edit this additional information into your question. Questions should contain the complete info required an answer the question. Comments are considered ephemeral. I'm not qualified to answer this question but there's enough info here now that I expect someone can and will.
    – AllInOne
    Apr 27, 2020 at 20:31
  • The location of the find would also be of help.
    – Boaz
    Apr 29, 2020 at 17:03
  • Going out on a limb, U↑ might either be inspection mark or government property disclaimer (C↑ is definitely Canadian gov property, dunno U↑), 17.6.18 is when it was filled by SF CO. SF in number might be the explosive type like CF is Cordite filled or Full charged shell, SF might be a type too like in modern naval artillery it is Slow fire as opposed to RF or rapid fire. SF CO might be Société Française de Munitions de Issy-les-Moulineaux
    – NSNoob
    May 1, 2020 at 11:30
  • Related: history.stackexchange.com/a/56556/1420
    – RedGrittyBrick
    May 1, 2020 at 19:48

1 Answer 1

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This appears to be a Canadian 4.5 inch Howitzer Shell Mark IX, possibly for naval use. It is lacking a fuse and the low weight indicates it is also lacking its filler; that means it's inert.

Note the narrow copper band at the bottom and the lack of a boat tail (narrowing at the bottom). There's no space for a fuse at the bottom, the fuse would screw into the top and is missing.

  • S.E.(F?) CO. is the monogram of the filler
  • 17.6.18 is the date of filling, June 17th, 1918.
  • 4.5 = 4.5 inch
  • HR is possibly for Howitzer
  • IX = Mark IX shell
  • CN may indicate Canadian Naval
  • 4765 is likely the shell design number
  • The broad arrow /|\ indicates it is the property of a Commonwealth government (Britain, Canada, Australia, etc).
    • /|\ U may be the examiner's mark.

For more information, try contacting the Canadian War Museum.

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