Maybe a Civil War button?

[NadiG]

Hello guys! Can anyone tell me about this button? It looks a bit like a civil war button, but I have not found one in Google that looks exactly the same..

 

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[ANTIQUARIAN]

Welcome to Tnet from Toronto NadiG!
Why did the button makers put so much detail on the back of these early one-piece buttons, yet they put nothing on the front?

Date wise, I'd say your button dates anywhere from 1820 - 60, so it may very well have been worn during the CW.

Dave

 

[smokeythecat]

Nice button. Antiquarian is correct. It is not military per se, but does go in that time frame.

 

[NadiG]

Thank you very much! It is American, right?It is found in Denmark

 

[smokeythecat]

Possibly British.

 

[NadiG]

Could be what does the "s" stand for?

 

[ticndig]

I've never seen a flat button with so mush going on . lots of detail, really nice.

 

[NadiG]

Yeah, but also a little confusing, when it comes to identifiction, hehe

 

[NickL78]

That looks earlier than civil war in my opinion.

 

[fyrffytr1]

I think your button would date from about 1810-mid 1830s if made in England. It it was made in America I would date it from about 1820-mid 1830s.

 

[creskol]

I believe the backmark shows three " Ostrich Plumes" which typically was the symbol of the Prince of Wales. If so, then it is a British made button and the "S" would stand for Smith.. perhaps that of W&R Smith of Birmingham England, circa 1816.

 

[NadiG]

Thanks a lot, very exciting to know!!!

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

Creskol got it right, as usual. British-made, with ostrich-plumes of Wales symbol, probably W&R Smith backmark. Also, I agree with Fyrffytr1, it's from the 1810s into the 1830s.

By the way... and the time this brass 1-piece flatbutton button was manufactured, the term "Plated" in a backmark always meant silver plated. Gold plate was called gilt.

Although it might seem surprising that this early-1800s brass button was found in Denmark, at that time the British seem to have been "the Buttonmaker to the World." Comparatively very few backmarks from other countries during that time period have been found. For example, France was as large as Britain, with about the same population, and just as wealthy a nation as Britain. So you'd think that French-made brass flatbuttons would turn up as often as British ones... instead of being extremely rare by comparison.