✅ SOLVED button age

[ticm]

I dug this up today and want to know if anybody knows how old it may be. It heavy for it's size. I soaked it in lemon juice for a while to get it cleaned up a bit.

Thank you

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

It is a Civilian-use (not Military) button from the latter 1700s to the early 1800s. Your button is known as a 1-piece solid-cast "white tombac" button. White Tombac is an alloy three metals ...copper, zinc, and arsenic. Apparently, the presence of the arsenic in the alloy prevents formation of the typical oxidation-layer seen on excavated brass-alloy buttons, because these "White Tombac" buttons often come out of the ground looking almost as shiny as the day they were lost, 200 or so years ago.

 

[ticm]

Wow that's som great info. you passed on. Thank you.