Not exactly a ‘Holy Grail’ but quite a surprise inside the tank.
It looks far too course to be a fuel filter in the conventional sense, but it looks like it might slip into the throat of the filler pipes to catch larger objects. If filling these tanks was an awkward task in a confined space, the filler caps might have had chains fitted to prevent their loss into an inaccessible place. One would also not want to lose one of those chains into a fuel tank, so those screens might have been used to prevent important stuff from falling into the tanks for all eternity.
Another long shot.
Back in the 70’s, I worked up in Yukon doing geology, using helicopters in remote areas. We had a string of 45 gallon drum fuel cashes strung up the Richardson Mountains to give the pilots the range and endurance they needed to move us about. Part of the kit they carried for refuelling was a chamois and a large hand fuel pump for the drums. They would wet the chamois and give it a good ring out and line their fuel funnel with it before pumping the fuel in. For some reason, the chamois let the fuel through but stopped any water from getting into the helicopter fuel tanks. It also stopped sediment passing through.
Maybe that screen served a similar purpose when used with a petrol can and flex hose fitting...?
David
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