Marbles used to create WW2's 'bouncing bomb' auctioned

Marbles used by a famous inventor to create World War Two's 'bouncing bomb' have sold for thousands of pounds at auction.

Sir Barnes Wallis' marbles sold for £15,200 and a pair of his binoculars went for £7,100 at Auctioneum in Bristol s on Monday.

He used the items when inventing the 'bouncing bomb' for Operation Chastise, known as the "Dambusters raids", in early 1942.

Associate director auctioneer and valuer Andrew Stowe said: "They're [marbles] just incredible... they changed modern warfare as we know it."

The Dambusters raids were a plan to destroy three dams in the Ruhr valley, in Germany.

It was one of the most dangerous air operations of the war, with 53 men killed and three captured.

The success of the mission ultimately raised morale for the allied forces.

Former chair of the Barnes Wallis Foundation Paul Beaver said: "The technology of the bouncing bomb, which is actually a mine, was all done because of the magic of marbles."

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