A chance find in a military auction catalogue has reunited the medals of two brothers who fought during the First World war.

Bill Quine, of Ramsey Road, Peel, had been searching for the long-lost Distinguished Conduct medal, which was awarded to his grandfather, John Thomas Quine.

John Quine and his brother, Thomas Frederick had both been awarded the DCM medal for their conduct during the second battle of the Somme, in March 1918.

However, while Thomas’ medal was still in the family, Bill said there was no sign of John’s.

But, by sheer chance, shortly after Bill had begun to discuss the possibility of find the medal, it appeared in the catalogue of military auctioneers Woolley and Wallis.

’Myrtle Quine, my cousin, still has her father, Thomas Quine’s medal, but we never knew where our’s was,’ said Bill.

’But then, strangely enough, soon after I was talking to her about the medals, she rang me up and said ’you won’t believe this Bill, but the medal has come up for auction, down in Salisbury’, which is near where I lived for 40 years.

’It was sat in a private museum collection. We don’t know how it got there, or where it went after the war, and the auctioneers won’t divulge the story of the medal, but I would like to find out eventually.’

Bill was able to successfully purchase the medal, and looks forward to being able to join the two together again.

’They are definitely the only two Manx brothers to win the medal and, as far as I have found out, the only brothers in the British army to win the same medal too, which makes it a very unique piece of history’ said Bill.

’It is a very emotional thing too. My father never saw this medal. He never knew where it was, and neither did my brother or cousins ever know where it was.

’But now I have it, and I’ve bought it back home. The fact that the two medals are finally back on the island, 100 years after the end of the war, means an awful lot to me.’