AN EAGLE-eyed museum official has ensured that a set of medals on display in Richmond is now complete.

The medals of Green Howard Tom Dresser, including a Victoria Cross, have been on show at the regimental museum for several years, on loan from the Dresser family.

However, the British war medal was missing and Mr Dresser's son, also Tom, said it had not been with the others for years and he had no idea where it was. The set was made up for display purposes with a medal from the museum's collection.

The real replacement has now been found, thanks to Lt Col Neil McIntosh, the curator, who spotted a British war medal for sale in a dealer's catalogue.

It bore the name T Dresser, but the army service number did not tally with that on Dresser's VC. Research by museum attendant Mr Steve Rarity, however, showed Dresser had had three army numbers - the number on the missing medal was his third and matched that on his victory medal.

The museum has now bought the original British war medal, which will rejoin Dresser's other medals in a showcase for the Green Howards' 18 VC winners.

Tom Dresser won his VC on May 12, 1917, after volunteering to take a message across no man's land to other British trenches under heavy fire. He was shot in the shoulder but bound the wound, tied the message to his identity neck discs, where it would be seen if he was killed, and continued. He was hit again, in the chin, but crawled to the trench and pointed to the message.

He said the last thing he remembered before losing consciousness was Sgt Maj Elliot giving him a drink from his water bottle; he said he knew he had done well if a sergeant major was prepared to give a private soldier his own drink.

He received his VC from King George V at a ceremony in July, 1917.