'Dead man's penny' tells sombre story of war

[akdrv]

The bronze military plaque had a place of honour in Jane Evans's living room for 34 years.

She never knew the sad story behind it. Until now.

 

The Hamilton woman has collected military memorabilia from three generations of men, including her two sons who have served in the Canadian Armed Forces.

 

The plaque, known as a dead man's penny, is propped up among military medals and black and white photos. But unlike the other mementoes, which represent bravery and honour, the heavy plaque -- made from gun metal -- represents loss.

 

http://www.hamiltonspectator.com/NASApp/cs...l=1014656511815

[Art]

An interesting and touching story.

[Scottishmoney]

I just wish with articles like this one that they had better images of the Medal.

[willieboyd2]

This website shows good pictures of the medal/plaque:

 

http://www.remembering.org.uk/memorial_scroll.htm

[Scottishmoney]

Thanks for posting the link, very interesting. The soldiers name was incorporated in each medal, which resulted in slow production, but it personalised each one. I still do not notice the resemblance to the British penny though.

[willieboyd2]

Found another link, this time from the UK Imperial War Museum:

 

http://collections.iwm.org.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.992

[ccg]

Many death pennies have dissappeared over the years. Often people didn't know what they were, and tossed them aside or sent them to the melting pot as some hunk of scrap metal (!)