TOPIC:

Jan Abraham Cronje lived on the farm "Witbankslaagte" in the Bethlehem district of the OVS.
He carried this Boer Mauser rifle, serial no. A8460. This rifle was imported in 1897 by the ZAR but, like many others, it was donated to the OVS government, who hadn’t ordered enough Mausers for their burgers.
It’s unclear to me what the carved date 29 January 1900 signifies, and I’d appreciate suggestions. It would have been about the time when the British took possession of the farm; possibly Jan Abraham Cronje took up arms at that time?
Jan Abraham Cronje was the husband of Mrs Hester Aug Cronje; they had three daughters, Sophia Jacoba Cronje, Hester Augusta Cronje, and Maria Cronje. These women were interned in the Winburg concentration camp; all survived.
Accompanying Jan Abraham Cronje on commando was his son: Lucas Abraham Cronje was captured with his father on the farm "Rietvlei", Bethlehem district, on 13/10/1901. Father and son were sent to an unknown POW camp in India on the ship, City of Vienna.
Jan Abraham Cronje was aged 54 when the South African War began, and he did not apply for the ABO medal [issued 1920-1983].