MEMORABILIA sent from Australia to an exhibition in Ewell celebrating women's struggle for equality has been held up by customs authorities.
The replica of a badge awarded to suffragette Muriel Matters was seized as it entered the U.K. due to a dispute over its stated value.
It had ben sent by Australia's Frances Bedford MP on loan to the Dying for the Vote exhibition at Bourne Hall.
Irene Cockroft, curator of the exhibition, said it was "sad to see an act of international goodwill fall victim to bureaucracy."
She added she had confirmed to authorities that the replica Women's Freedom League 'Holloway' badge was a museum piece on loan.
"It is intended that Frances Bedford MP will collect the item to take back to Australia at the end of the exhibition," she said.
Australian-born Muriel Matters was imprisoned in Holloway following several daring suffragette exploits.
She famously chained herself to the grille of the Ladies' Gallery in the British House of Commons on October 28, 1908.
The Dying for the Vote exhibition marks the centenary of the death of suffragette Emily Davidson. It will run at the Borough Museum, Bourne Hall, Ewell, until July 27.
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