Limited Edition and Unique Pin Badge (Polished)

We are proud to introduce these limited edition, authentic pin badges, beautifully crafted using a mix of modern bronze and copper from original British artillery shell ‘drive bands’ found in the Ypres and Passchendaele areas of Belgium. Created to support National War Animal Day and our annual Animal Purple Poppy Fund by provenance brand TMB Art Metal of London. They come in a beautiful presentation box with a choice of two finishes, polished bright or antiqued (see next item in shop).

The pin badges offer a choice of two finishes, polished bright or antiqued, to give a more subdued look. They cost £57.50, inclusive of postage, packing and insurance. International buyers should order via Info@thewarhorsememorial.org but can still pay via PayPal. For EU customers the cost is £62.50; orders going to the US £65. Again, prices are inclusive.

It’s hard to imagine that anything beautiful could come from metal that caused such devastation. They are the work of Christopher Bennett and his small team of craftsmen and women who have produced the miniature replicas of the head of Poppy, our national and Commonwealth war horse memorial based in Ascot. The purple enamel at the base of the pin is mixed with tiny fragments of earth from where it’s believed cavalryman George Ellison, the last British soldier to die in WW1, met his end.

Christopher, who collected the earth himself for the pin badges, explains: “George Ellison served with the 5th Irish Lancers at the very start of World War One at the Battle of Mons, on August 23, 1914. Four years later he was back at Mons when on November 11, 1918 with ‘A’ Squadron and on horseback, when he was ordered to “rush on Mons” to take high ground near St Denis.

“Encountering a German patrol in the woods at 9.45 am, it’s believed George, who survived four years of warfare and many major battles, caught an unlucky bullet on the very last day of war and passed away just minutes before the 11am armistice.”