I thought I would send you a photo of so-called trench artwork from the First World War.
This little coal scuttle has been in my family for as long as I can remember. Although my family name is Wilson we have a strong family connection to the Brown family who were willow growers in the village of Stutton near Tadcaster. The name of F Harris is engraved on this although my father could not remember who he was.
The brass body of the coal scuttle is a used brass gun shell, the handle is made of two rifle shells with brass uniform buttons at each end.
The two legs are firing pins from a large gun, the rest of the piece is copper and brass fabricated presumably from scraps of shrapnel.
It a beautiful relic from the First World War and engraved on it are these words: Made by F Harris in France Somme 1916. I have visited the battlefields of northern France several times, and visited museums and antique shops but I have never seen anything similar to my little souvenir.
Stuart Wilson,
Acomb, York
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