Chinese Trench Art (3D)

This piece of trench art was made from a German artillery shell by a member of the Chinese Labour Corps. Chinese characters and other designs have been etched on to the surface. It is a very unusual artefact and offers us a rare glimpse of the First World War through non-Western eyes.

The Chinese Labour Corps were volunteers employed by the British Army to dig trenches, move munitions and supplies and other hard labour tasks. This shell was probably picked up by a labourer clearing the battlefields after the war.

Read more about this object on the Lest We Forget archive.