Local students take part in international war memorial project

A group of six farriery students at Hyfforddiant Ceredigion Training (HCT) in Aberystwyth are the only students in Wales to be part of an international poppy project aimed at creating a metal Cenotaph for the 21st century.

Standing seven meters tall and weighing 12 tonnes, the metal Cenotaph for the 21st century will feature the evocative image of a single Flanders poppy, surrounded by a field of 2016 steel poppies handcrafted by blacksmiths and farriers worldwide.

The students aged between 16 -18 years old, are involved with the production of the memorial and are crafting five poppies that will be used on the cenotaph, under the expert guidance of Master Blacksmith Mr Dai Price, who is the Farriery Training Adviser at HCT. HCT is the only Welsh training establishment and farriery college contributing to this magnificent project.

The Poppy Cenotaph, which will be finished in front of the Flanders Fields Museum in Ypres, Belgium, in September 2016, will then be permanently sited by the German War Cemetery at Langemark-Poelkapelle.

Master Blacksmith Dai price from HCT said: “We are delighted and honoured to be involved in this fantastic project, the young people that are working on the production of these poppies have been given a once in a lifetime opportunity to help commemorate the blacksmiths and farriers that lost their lives in World War I, and I’m sure their involvement is something that they will remember for ever. We are very proud to represent Wales’ by contributing to such a worthwhile commemorative event.”

Blacksmiths and farriers were instrumental in sustaining and maintaining war machinery during World War I and, along with so many others, paid a terrible price in serving their countries. To commemorate those that lost their lives, hundreds of blacksmiths and farriers from across the world will gather in Ypres in September to see the unveiling of the Poppy Cenotaph, however prior to that many will be involved in the design and production of bespoke railing panels and poppies which will be incorporated into the memorial.

Each poppy that is made will be numbered and the number of that poppy will be recorded on a certificate that will be given to the learner as a memento of their involvement.

For more information about the project please go to http://www.ypres2016.com/forging-childrens-poppies/