Landships II

It is definitely a spare wheel or tyre. The vehicle looks like it might be a Triota, Jota or Pentaiota (Lancia used Greek classical names) its hard to tell as all three were available 1922-27 and there were minimal differences, mainly length, fitting points for the body etc. Also Lancia were prone to retrofitting any developments which makes identification even trickier. If its a British vehicle it would have been supplied by WL Stewart and Co. up to 1922 or Curtis Automobile after 1922, probably to 'Coloniale' spec which means higher axle clearances (avoid rocks), bigger capacity radiator, modified steering, nickel plate as opposed to chrome for the brightwork, and wooden parts treated to deter white ants. Lancia had much experience with desert conditions as they built many trucks and armoured vehicles (often bodied by Ansaldo) for the Italian campaigns in Eritrea, Libya etc. I think the Lewis guns weren't the usual type and were chambered to take .303 British spec ammunition. Coloniale Lancias came with an extensive set of tools and spares probably housed in that chest you can see by the back wheel, some also came with two 5-gallon drums, but I doubt if any came with a rear leaf spring set which is what you can see dangling to the back of the bodywork; damaged leaf springs could be retempered and reset by a good blacksmith though, so maybe this was just a spare set they picked up from a damaged vehicle. Lancias were used extensively by Trenchard in Palestine and he was the first man to actively combine air and land intelligence; the aircraft would do the surveying then relay the information to the land vehicles. Despite his much vaunted love for Rolls Royce, the legendary Lawrence of Arabia also used Lancias when the going got really tough, but others preferred Austins, Peerless, Jeffery Quads etc; private operators like the Nairn Brothers who ran a trans-desert bus service also liked Lancias but moved onto Cadillacs in due course, mainly for speed. The slanted rails in front of the radiator were often fitted with some kind of wire cutter as well as offering frontal protection; also at the back there would have been a selection of tools, spades, planks etc. A Triota (which is what I think this is) was never fast, top speed was around 45mph, but you didn't need any more than that in the desert; they were however highly robust and reliable. Many remained in use during World War II sometimes converted to water carriers, fuel tenders, mobile canteens etc. I have a very poor photo of a row of these cars ready to be exported, lined up in a scruffy yard that I think may be WL Stewart & Co's Kennington (Otto Street London) works, might be wrong, but its definitely UK and they are definitely Coloniales.