Found this in desert wash in Arizona

[Pandoo]

I found this piece in the San Domingo Wash in Arizona, which is a known placer gold area from the 1800's. It's about 3" x 1.5" & maybe 1/16" thick. Probably brass or copper due to patina. Any ideas?

 

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[DCMatt]

I don't know what it was originally but it was re-purposed later probably as decoration. The holes are nail punched and not symmetrical on the piece. One end looks "worked". Any evidence it was broken off a larger piece?

DCMatt

 

[jewelerguy]

looking at the last picture, which is upside down according to the shield orientation, you can see that what is actually the bottom of the piece has what appears to be cutouts that look like they should go around some 3 dimensional lettering. This makes me think this piece came from something like a stove/heater, an ice box, or maybe even an antique automobile. I think Matt is correct that the holes are not correct and it may have been re-used