A TINY bronze sculpture depicting two soldiers raising a red poppy has taken centre stage at a Bournemouth art gallery.

The war sculpture, currently on show at Westover Gallery, is one of 1,566 unique pieces created by British artist Nic Joly to commemorate the centenary of the outbreak of the Great War.

Every piece in the collection, entitled Never Forgotten, represents one day of fighting during the conflict.

The sculptures come with a £695 price tag and £100 from every sale is being donated to the Royal British Legion.

Alison Tanswell, Westover Gallery’s general manager, said in four days after the sculpture was unveiled, the gallery took more than 30 orders, already raising thousands of pounds for the charity.

Mr Joly, who is renowned for his miniature pieces of sculptural theatre, took his inspiration from a 96-year-old D-Day hero.

The veteran regaled stories about WW2 and told the artist about his father’s experiences fighting in the First World Wa r.

Mr Joly said: “In my own small way, I want this piece to remind us that all those who have given their lives in conflicts from the First World War until the present day will be never forgotten.

“I was struck by the fact that what we all think of the first war as a distant history, a black and white image-based view. The meeting made it all so real and so relevant. All those that fought and died were just like you and me – they were normal people in a terrible situation but doing incredibly.”