WW1 Trench Art

[2AD_Vet]

Our local museum had a display of some WW1 shell casings that have been made into various pieces of art. Some are very impressive.

I have a couple shots of the display to share.




Anybody else have some cool trench art examples to share?

[browningautorifle]

Some very nice pieces there, very interesting way of holding them down to the shelf. Keeps people's hands from sticking to them...

[HOOKED ON HISTORY]

Beautiful, a little time and lots of creativity.

[Flying10uk]

It would be interesting to know how some of the more "extreme"/"hour-glass" shapes were achieved from a standard shell case because brass does tend to "work hard" as you try to shape it. Presumably the workpiece was annealed a number of times while in the process of being shaped.

[browningautorifle]

I've gone so far as dismantling several lights to recover the shells from them

I've had a couple pieces like that, recovered from lamps. Those are done since I think. These were done in workhouses to help fund the war and give recovering vets something to do while they mended wounds.

Presumably the workpiece was annealed a number of times while in the process of being shaped.

They had full equipment so an oven wouldn't be hard to fashion.

[Aragorn243]

One area I have never got into, viewing it sort as a "bubba" of shell casings. Not saying I don't appreciate it, just prefer the unaltered ones. I've gone so far as dismantling several lights to recover the shells from them. I do see them a lot, they tend to be on the expensive side which is another reason I've steered clear.

[Sapper740]

I've gone so far as dismantling several lights to recover the shells from them.

Same here Steve. I've removed five 2" mortar shells and one 4.2" shell from lamps.

[Flying10uk]

Do you ever see these in the US, WW2 "Shell Caps"? As I understand it they were a transit cap that was installed on a shell nose before the fuse was fitted. Just before firing the cap was removed, discarded and the fuse screwed onto the shell. They do seem relatively common in the UK, often cut in half, one part reversed, then soldered back together to make an ashtray. More often than not they have a cap badge soldered onto the front.

I do have a couple of these ashtrays, one of which was gifted to my father in the late 1940's by a former British solder.

[browningautorifle]

a transit cap that was installed on a shell nose

There's a couple for sale on a site local that I deal with. Yes they turn up here.

[Aragorn243]

Do you ever see these in the US, WW2 "Shell Caps"?

I have never seen them. I've seen ashtrays made out of the cut down bases of shells and have two of those but never seen a cap before. Possibly because our ammunition was different from yours?