August 7, 20232 yr #1 Hi, new to the group. This looks like the right party to bring the photos attached. These were bonus items in an auction lot box of ladies watches (right?). We know who the family is that owned the auction items and they have a farm in Kentucky, so we suspect this was found on their farm as they did not have a military collection that we are aware of. Battle of Perryville (Civil War) was fought nearby. I'm fairly sure it's a rosette from a horse or mule harness or some other tack, but I am not finding anything comparable online. The letter styling does not have the serifs on most other U.S. insignia's from the Civil War era. Is this what I believe it to be and if so, any idea on the approximate date? Civil War or later? It's about 1.25" in diameter. Only two prongs show in the first photo, but there are three. All have been straighten to remove it from whatever it was attached to. Thanks in advance!
August 7, 20232 yr #3 14 hours ago, robinb said: Looks to me like the rosette off of a WW1 work horse blinder set. Awesome, thank you!
September 23, 20241 yr #4 The key to dating these is less about the font serif, but whether it is lead-filled, and what the attachment loops and prongs on the back look like. These simple sheet brass spots with the three prongs ( and no lead filling ) are post-1910. Harness specifications up to 1910 mention 'filled ornaments'. There are a few really good civil war photographs of wagons and associated harness, and you can see very similar harness ornaments with extremely simple block 'US' letters. I suspect they fell off easily, or were occasionally removed - as many harness bridles don't show them - even some teams having a mix of ornaments and non-ornamented bridles.
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