Trench of Somme shrouds on display in Bristol

The trench stacked with more than 70,000 shrouded figure has gone on display at Aerospace Bristol

A 45m (147ft) long trench stacked with tens of thousands of shrouded figurines representing men killed in a World War One battle has gone on display.

The trench represents the 72,396 men killed in the Battle of the Somme, whose bodies were never recovered.

It has been created at the Aerospace Bristol by Rob Heard, the artist behind the Shrouds of the Somme.

He said it showed an "uncomfortable and oppressive image of a huge amount of people crushed together".

The Battle of the Somme was one of the bloodiest battles of the war.

About 100,000 Allied soldiers went "over the top" to face the German army in the valley of the River Somme.

The Trench represents the 72,396 men killed in the Battle of the Somme, whose bodies were never recovered

Somerset artist Rob Heard said The Trench shows the "mass loss" of men with no known grave, whose bodies were not recovered

The exhibition features a 6.5ft (2m) high wooden trench lined with thousands of hand-stitched calico shrouded figures, each measuring 12in (30cm) long.

Mr Heard from Washford, in Somerset, said the Shrouds of the Somme represented the 19,240 individuals who lost their life on the first day of battle but The Trench shows the "mass of these figures".

"There were 72,396 men with no known grave, whose bodies weren't recovered," he said.

"The trench is lined with all the figures, stacked on top of each other. So, you walk through the 45m trench and you're buried in this thing."

The two metre high wooden installation is designed to give a sense of "being in a trench and what the large numbers of those killed really means"

Alongside the "immersive experience" the names and details of all 72,396 servicemen are also on display.

The Trench exhibition will be at Aerospace Bristol until 14 October.

The Shrouds of the Somme is due to be laid out at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in November for the Armistice Centenary.