Bravery medals awarded to a collie called Rob that made 20 parachute jumps during the second world war and is credited with frequently saving his human colleagues have sold at auction for a record £140,000.
Rob was strapped into a special harness and calmly followed infantry troops into north Africa and parachuted into Nazi-held Italy with the SAS, with one of his jobs being to stand guard and alert his human comrades of danger by licking their faces.
He was the only dog ever to be awarded both the PDSA Dickin Medal for Gallantry, considered the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross, and the RSPCA Red Collar for Valour – as well as a lifetime supply of biscuits.
His owner’s son, Basil Bayne, who grew up with Rob in Shropshire, has sold the medals, alongside his collar, a portrait and photographs, at auctioneers Noonans Mayfair in London.
It smashed the previous record for a Dickin Medal, which stood at £22,000 for one awarded to a homing pigeon called Duke of Normandy, who brought news of the D-day landings back to the UK from France.
Bayne said: “I can’t believe the price but I am so delighted that Rob’s story and legacy is held in such high respect and that the important role that he and many other animals have played is being recognised.”
Christopher Mellor-Hill, a specialist at Noonans, described Rob’s medals as the most important of their kind ever to come to auction.
He said: “Rob the parachuting dog is the most famous of all the Dickin Medal recipients.”
