British War Relief Society metal bookmarks

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c. 1941

Overview

Two enamelled brass bookmarks sold by the British War Relief Society (a US humanitarian organisation) to raise funds to support and show solidarity with the British people during and after World War Two.
The bookmark shows a crest reading 'Dieu et mon Droit' (God and my right), Great Britain's motto, and a heraldic lion on a red white and blue ribbon inside a circular, gold rimmed, convex disc with white background.
To the outside of that is another gold edged blue circle containing the words 'British War Relief Society'.
The main part of the bookmark is a long, narrow red triangle with gold edges. It has a metal loop at the top through which a hanging tassel is attached. Just below where the tassel is attached is a gold thumbs-up sign.The initials 'BWRS' appear in gold along the length of the bookmark.

These two bookmarks have lost their original tassels which would have been blue in colour and quite long. They came with a third bookmark carved from timber and featuring an animal on top.

Historical information

In 1941, the umbrella organization British War Relief Society was created to coordinate the efforts of the many grassroots groups in the United States already in existence providing aid for the British people. Many items were raise to raise funds, sometimes under the name 'Bundles for Britain'. These included pins and brooches, tie bars, cloth patches, matchboxes and matchbox covers, plates and other ceramic items and even a metal golfball marker.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-119-RoW00219

Item type

Collectibles

Domestic Objects

Ephemera

Themes

Social History
War and Conflict
War and Conflict > World War 2

Material

Brass

Enamels