Trench art Trench art is any decorative item made by soldiers , prisoners of war or civilians , where the manufacture is directly linked to armed conflict or its consequences . Common articles that this includes are decorated shell and bullet casings and items carved from wood and bone . Not limited to the World Wars , the history of trench art spans conflicts from the Napoleonic Wars to the present day . Although the practice flourished during World War I , the term ' trench art ' is also used to describe souvenirs manufactured by service personnel during World War II . Some items manufactured soldiers , prisoners of war or civilians during earlier conflicts have been retrospectively described as trench art . Categorisation . There are four broad categories , four circumstances under which trench art items were created : Category 1 : Soldier - made items . There is much evidence to prove that some trench art was made in the trenches , by soldiers , during the war . In " With a Machine Gun to Cambrai " , George Coppard talks about pressing his regimental buttons into the clay on the floor of the trench , then pouring molten lead from shrapnel balls into this impression to make lead replicas of the crest – trench art personified . Chalk carvings were also popular , with contemporary postcards showing carvings into the side of rocky outcrops around dug - outs etc . , which again confirm their existence in the battle zone . Alongside items that , by their nature , had to be made " in situ " , it is fair to assume many smaller items — rings , paper knives , etc . - - were made by soldiers either in front line or support trenches , especially in quieter parts of the line . In addition , wounded soldiers would be encouraged to do certain craftwork as part of the recuperation process , with embroidery and simple forms of woodwork being common . Again from " With a Machine Gun to Cambrai " , George Coppard recalls that , while recuperating from wounds at a private house in Birkenhead , “ one kind old lady brought a supply of coloured silks and canvas and instructed us in the art of embroidery . A sampler which I produced under her guidance so pleased her that she had it framed for me . ” . Category 2 : POW and Internee items . The second category consists of items made by prisoners of war and interned civilians . Since Napoleonic times POWs had good reasons to create decorative objects – unending days with little to occupy them and limited food and money . Much POW work was therefore done with the express intention of trading the finished article for food , money or other privileges . Reference to POW work is made in the recollections of A B Baker , W . A . A . C . , contained in the book " Everyman at War " , published by Purdom in 1930 : “ Part of my work had to do with prisoners quartered in a camp near to our own . Those Germans were friendly men . They were clever with their hands , and would give me little carvings which they had made . ” Category 3 : Civilian - made items . The third category is items made by civilians , which mainly means civilians in and around the conflict zone , but would also include items made by sweethearts at home . In 1914 America set up a Belgian Relief Fund , headed by Herbert Hoover . They shipped over staple foodstuffs , mainly flour sent in the printed cotton flour sacks typical of the period . In thanks the Belgians would embroider and paint in the designs , elaborating them with dates and flags , etc . , and send them back to America . Many of these are now in the Herbert Hoover Museum in Iowa , but some were sold to soldiers in Paris or given as gifts to individuals involved in the shipment process . Civilians in France , in the zones occupied by troops , were quick to exploit this new market . Embroidered postcards were produced in what quickly became a cottage industry , with civilians buying the surrounds and embroidering the panel of gauze . These postcards often had regimental crests or patriotic flags and national symbols in abundance , and millions were produced over the course of the war . When the war ended and civilians began to reclaim their shattered communities , a new market appeared in the form of pilgrims and tourists . Over the ensuing twenty years the mountains of discarded debris , shell casings and equipment were slowly recycled , with mass - produced town crest motifs being stuck onto bullets , shell casings , fuse caps — anything — and sold to tourists . Category 4 : Commercially - made items . The fourth category is purely commercial production . After the war , tonnes of surplus materials were sold by the government and converted to souvenirs of the conflict . Ship breaking , particularly if the ship had been involved in significant events , such as Jutland , resulted in much of the wood from the ship being turned into miniature barrels , letter racks , boxes , etc . , with small brass plaques announcing " Made from teak from HMS " XYS " , whose guns relieved Ladysmith / fought at the battle of Jutland " , etc .