Prisoner-of-war models
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Glasgow Museums has a collection of ship models made by French prisoners-of-war during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars (1792-1815). Captured French soldiers and sailors were held in a network of depots across Britain, including four in Scotland - Greenlaw and Valleyfield Mill near Penicuik, Perth Depot and Edinburgh Castle, where the bone model of a 44-gun frigate in the collection was made. The prisoners lived in very restricted conditions, and to improve their mental health and material situation, many made toys and decorative items which they were permitted to sell or trade during sanctioned market-day interactions with local residents. They made resourceful use of materials available in their environment, particularly animal bones, wood, hair and straw to create models of things they knew well, most notably sailing warships. Many surviving prisoner-of-war ship models are exquisite examples of fine workmanship and have inspired other model builders ever since. There are 17 models in the collection, 13 are principally made from bone, while one large model and three miniature models are made from wood. Nine of the models have their original baseboards and all have a fine range of detail, from Grecian figureheads to banks of retractable cannons.
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