Poppies at the Imperial War Museum: a first look at the stunning new display in Manchester

Thousands of hand crafted ceramic poppies, which were originally part of an iconic artwork at the Tower of London, to commemorate the centenary of the First World War, have gone on permanent display at Imperial War Museum North.

Comprising thousands of handcrafted ceramic flowers, ‘Poppies’ will make its permanent home within the unique architecture of IWM North, cascading over 30 metres within the museum’s Air Shard.

They were among nearly 900,000 ceramic poppies at the Tower of London in 2014, which more than five million people visited between August and November 2014.

Sections - known as the Wave and the Weeping Window - were then exhibited in 19 different venues around the country.

The initial Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red installation included 888,246 poppies - one for every life lost among the British and colonial forces on the World War One frontline between 1914 and 1918.

The sculpture will be displayed from 10 November 2021, coinciding with Remembrance season, helping visitors to refresh their understanding of the poppy as a symbol of the very human cost of war.

Laura Clouting, senior curator at IWM, said: “We’re really pleased to be able to display this incredibly dramatic and overpowering sculpture that so many people will be familiar with from it’s display at the Tower of London in 2014.”