Knockaloe Bone Vases

Manx Museum Accession Number - 2002-0147

These vases were carved from the shin bones of a cow by a civilian prisoner interned in the Isle of Man during the First World War. They bear the name of the camp, Knockaloe near Peel in the west of the island, where he was held along with 25,000 other prisoners. Boredom was the biggest challenged faced by those interned, and the craft workshops which were organised to try to tackle this proved hugely popular. Raw materials came from whatever lay to hand, and when bones from the camp kitchen ran out, they were imported from Liverpool. Knockaloe Camp grew so large that it even had its own branch railway line to bring in supplies.

These vases are on display in the Manx Museum, Douglas.

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