Original British WWI Era Heart Shaped Trench Art For The Durham Light Infantry With Buttons, Insignia and Imperial German Prussian Wappen Pickelhaube Plate Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. Trench art is any decorative item made by soldiers, prisoners of war, or civilians where the manufacture is directly linked to armed conflict or its consequences. It offers an insight not only to their feelings and emotions about the war, but also their surroundings and the materials they had available to them.

Not limited to the World Wars, the history of trench art spans conflicts from the Napoleonic Wars to the present day. Although the practice flourished during World War I, the term ‘trench art’ is also used to describe souvenirs manufactured by service personnel during World War II. Some items manufactured by soldiers, prisoners of war or civilians during earlier conflicts have been retrospectively described as trench art.

This piece may have been done during the war to be sent home to loved ones or was made in the immediate post war era to commemorate this soldier’s service. The base of this work of art was a heart shaped piece of wood trimmed by felt with what appears to be an early epoxy type resin or something similar. Inlaid into the surface is a total of 11 General Service buttons, a Canadian button, Australian Commonwealth Military Forces insignia, DLI badges and lastly a beautiful Prussian Eagle Wappen taken from a Pickelhaube to tie the display altogether.

The overall condition is quite nice but a few of the insignia has come loose due to age and material shrinkage. The top layer of the epoxy like coating does have scratching in it but does appear to be able to be cleaned easy if you would wish to do so. Measures approximately 12″H x 11″W.

Comes more than ready for further research and display.