Full dress coat belonging to sub-lieutenant Ralph William Inigo Jones (1851-1930). Double-breasted coat of superfine blue wool which fastens with two rows of nine gilt brass domed buttons. The sleeve terminates in a mariners cuff with a three point slash faced with white wool, edged with gold lace and featuring three small gilt brass domed buttons. The distinction lace on each sleeve is a single stripe with a curl.

To indicate the rank of sub-lieutenant, there is a narrow strip of gold lace with the 'curl'. The rank of sub-lieutenant was introduced in 1861 and replaced that of mate and Assistant Engineers, 1st Class. This marked an important change in these two ranks of warrant officers as they became commissioned officers. Initially, he wore a single strip of gold lace on his cuff – that with the curl. However, in 1863, this was changed and he was given a second stripe of gold lace to be worn below the curl.

The back of the coat is cut in a diamond shape which serves to create a broad-shouldered silhouette. There are gilt brass domed hip buttons and, on either side of these is a three point pocket flap edged with padded gold lace. The pocket flaps are lined with blue wool. There are three domed gilt brass buttons under the flaps. The pockets themselves are not accessed through the flaps, but rather through the tails. The pocket bags are of white cotton and there is a gilt brass button at the base of each pocket bag. There is also a gilt brass button at the base of both tails.

The tails are lined with a cream plain weave silk. The sleeves are lined with white cotton and the body of the coat is lined with a very badly deteriorated cream silk twill. The chest and around the armholes and down the sides have been lined with wadding to build and covered with a silk lining that has been creased into small squares and held at the corners of each square with a prick stitch. There is additional wadding in the lining at the tops of the shoulders.