Weston Beamor has announced a new project that will see it cast poppy pins designed to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme in 1916.
The casting, 3D printing and bespoke manufacturing company will cast the poppies for London-based company TMB Art Metal as a fundraising initiative for the Royal British Legion.
The poppies will be sold exclusively through the ‘Poppy Shop’ on the Royal British Legion’s website, with the proceeds of all sales going to the charity. Each poppy will have a retail price of £39.99.
The poppies are exclusive and each represent an individual British soldier who died during the battle, which was fought from 1 July to 18 November 1916.
The pins will be cast using metal exclusively from British brass artillery shell fuses salvaged from the battlefield in France by Christopher Bennett, the managing director of TMB Art Metal, who has also been given fuses by local farmers who regularly find them when ploughing their fields.
The red-enamel spot in the centre of each poppy will contain a piece of the earth recovered from the site of the British front line, which stretched for 18 miles. Each pin is marked on the reverse with the words ‘SOMME 1916’ and is presented in a lacquered wooden presentation box with an illustrated certificate of authenticity.
Individual poppies will also feature a ‘Royal British Legion Everyman Remembered’ certificate commemorating the life of an individual soldier.
Glen Day, head of business development at Weston Beamor, said: “We are absolutely delighted to be involved in this very worthwhile project and our whole team has found it very moving to know the backstory that underlies each and every piece.”
Bennett added: “It is emotional to walk the old front line and find these fuses linked to such an important event in our country’s history and know the poppies are made from them. This project is very much a labour of love and means a lot to me personally.”
