Christmas Truce Memorial (St. Yvon)

British artist Andy Edward designed a life-size work of art about the Christmas Truce, the famous truce (with football match) that took place on Christmas Day 1914 during the First World War. The work of art features a German and British soldier shaking hands.
A preliminary design of the artwork in polyester was presented on Monday, December 22, 2014 during the football match in the English Premier League between Stoke City and Chelsea. The artwork arrived in Messines on Wednesday, December 24, 2014, after which the model traveled around Europe - exhibited near the buildings of the European Parliament and UNESCO in Paris - to end the journey on June 7, 2015 in Dublin with the friendly football match between Ireland and England.
Afterwards the work of art was cast in bronze and donated to the city of Mesen. The unveiling took place at the end of December 2015.
(dekleinemote.be)

During World War I, there were several instances of unofficial ceasefires and truces between soldiers from opposing sides around Christmas time 1914. When British and German soldiers, facing each other in trenches along the Western Front, temporarily ceased hostilities to celebrate Christmas. They exchanged gifts, sang carols, and even played soccer matches in "No Man's Land".The Memorial by sculptor Andrew Edwards commemorates the 1914 Christmas Truce football event near the hamlet of St. Yvon, 3 kilometres south of Messines.