2-631-770 - Historic England/Heritage Images

Cheque for £25,000 made payable to Mr Harry Grindell Matthews, December 1915. Matthews (1880-1941) was an inventor, best known for his claim to have invented a death ray in the 1920s. This cheque was awarded by the British government, following the outbreak of the First World War, for his invention of a remotely controlled weapon against Zeppelins or unmanned vehicles.