Lands and Seas of Red
By Alison Smith
On and around Remembrance Sunday,
Red”. The inspiration of Derbyshire-based
It is a breathtaking sight. When
annual “Poppy Appeal” when you can buy
hand-sculpted ceramic poppies are being
the idea for a ‘sea of red’ after reading
The Royal British Legion launch their
a paper poppy for your lapel and donate to a charity which helps current and
former military personnel. Poppy wreaths are also laid at the cenotaph and other war memorials around the world.
This year, being the 100th anniversary of
the beginning of the First World War, the poppy symbol has been taken to a new
ceramic artist Paul Cummins, 888,246
made and fixed to two-foot metal stalks
and planted in the dry moat of the Tower of London. It is an ongoing process
with the last poppy due to be planted on Armistice Day on November 11th
2014. Each of the poppies represents a Commonwealth soldier, sailor or airman who died in The Great War.
level at The Tower of London where a
The 888,246 poppies are for sale with 10% of
called “Blood Swept Lands and Seas of
charities and are already selling like hot cakes.
stunning art installation has been created
the price plus all sales profits going to six service
interviewed, Paul Cummins said he had the will of a Derbyshire man who joined up and died in Flanders.
‘I don’t know his name or where he
was buried or anything about him,’ said Cummins, who found the will among
other old records in Chesterfield. ‘But this line he wrote, when everyone he knew
was dead, and everywhere around him
was covered in blood, jumped out at me:
‘The blood-swept lands and seas of red, where angels fear to tread.’
Hand made in Paul Cummins’ studio,
poppies are available for £25.00 +p&p. All net proceeds plus a guaranteed 10% from every poppy sold will be shared equally amongst six service charities, which we hope will raise
millions of pounds if all poppies are
sold. Poppies will only be available to purchase throughout the duration of
the installation. The Tower Poppies are being sold by Paul Cummins Ceramics Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red
CIC with the support of Historic Royal Palaces.
https://poppies.hrp.org.uk/buy-a-poppy/ Picture courtesy of Anneliese Hanbury-Tracy
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