''Women of Steel'' is a bronze sculpture that commemorates the women of

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

who worked in the city's steel industry during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. A work of the sculptor

Martin Jennings Martin Jennings, FRBS (born 31 July 1957, in Chichester, West Sussex) a British sculptor who works in the figurative tradition, in bronze and stone. His statue of John Betjeman at St Pancras railway station was unveiled in 2007 and the statu ...

, it was unveiled in June 2016. ''Women of Steel'' was given the Keith Hayman Award in the Sheffield Design Awards 2016 and the

Public Monuments and Sculpture Association The Public Monuments and Sculpture Association (PMSA) was an organisation established in 1991 to bring together individuals and organisations with an interest in British public sculptures and monuments, their production, preservation and history ...

's 2017

Marsh Award for Excellence in Public Sculpture The Marsh Award for Excellence in Public Sculpture is an annual award for public sculpture in the UK or Ireland. The Award is funded by the Marsh Charitable Trust and is made on the recommendation of a panel of judges under the auspices of the Pu ...

Background

The sculpture was commissioned by

Sheffield City Council Sheffield City Council is the city council for the metropolitan borough of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. It consists of 84 councillors, elected to represent 28 wards, each with three councillors. It is currently under No Overall Con ...

. The project cost £150,000 of which £102,000 was paid for the sculpture. The unveiling was attended by 100 women who worked in the steelworks. Additional money that was raised for the statue paid for medallions to commemorate the women who worked in Sheffield's steelworks during the world wars. The medallions were made by the

Sheffield Assay Office The Sheffield Assay Office is one of the four remaining assay offices in the United Kingdom, the other three being in London, Birmingham, and Edinburgh. In 1773, Sheffield's silversmiths joined with those of Birmingham to petition Parliament f ...

, with 100 women having applied for them and 400 family members of deceased women steelworkers.

References

{{Italic title 2016 sculptures Bronze sculptures in the United Kingdom Buildings and structures in Sheffield History of women in the United Kingdom United Kingdom home front during World War I United Kingdom home front during World War II Monuments and memorials to women Public art in England Tourist attractions in Sheffield * United Kingdom in World War II * World War I memorials in the United Kingdom World War II memorials in England