January 20 - Trench Art

Trench Art is the term applied to objects made or decorated by soldiers, prisoners of war and civilians between 1914 and 1939 and kept as souvenirs or household ornaments by themselves or their relatives. Common examples include: painted or decorated artillery shell cases, crucifixes, jewellery and talismans, carvings, detailed models or military equipment. Trench Art can be broadly classified into three categories: War mementos made by soldiers during the Great War (1914-1918); Items produced by civilians during both World Wars (1914-1945); Souvenirs produced commercially from discarded war materials during the period between the wars (1918-1939).

The second category is generally considered to be the largest in terms of overall quantity of items produced. Wartime and post-war economic deprivation, together with vast quantities of war material strewn across the battlefields combined to produce a thriving industry.

As personal memories of the two World Wars have faded with time so too has the popularity of Trench Art. Increasingly it is seen today as hardly worth mentioning, let alone collecting. Since the end of the Second World War a great proportion of Great War Trench Art has returned to the blast furnaces from whence it came to be melted for scrap.

During the Second World War my Dad fought in the Finnish army against the Russians. During quiet times on the frontlines he carved a wooden box with inlaid timbers. He recently restored it as the hinges had broken after 68 years of use. It's a poignant memento of his war service.

Here's the double-page spread I have done -