Need help on ID of item found today

[pl8man]

Found this thing today at a park . It was only 2 inches deep . I don't think it's all that old . What the heck is it . It is two sided and looks the same on both sides .
Any info would be great !
Glen

 

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[RedCardHack]

Looks like a slide buckle, maybe buckle boy can help.

 

[ohiowhiteguy]

a nickle?..oh you mean the other thing ofabob...i'm thinking part of a door knocker..
HH...
OWG...

 

[jrwill56]

looks like a drawer label holder

 

[Broken knee]

It's the same on both sides? Try opening a bottle of Budweiser mister!! Bottle opener is my wag. hh
Broken Knee

 

[skeeterd]

I'm goin with Broken knee and the bottle opener. That may not be what it is, but we could use it to open our beer while we discussed what it really is!!

 

[Joseph Gilbert]

Found this thing today at a park . It was only 2 inches deep . I don't think it's all that old . What the heck is it . It is two sided and looks the same on both sides .
Any info would be great !
Glen

It looks to me like a garter buckle from the victorian period

 

[Gunrunner61]

Some type of Garter buckle is my guess too.........HH

 

[Breezie]

When you say 'it looks the same on both sides' . . . is it a mirror image? Could you post a pic of the back? Also, what is the width of the opening? Breezie

 

[pl8man]

When you say 'it looks the same on both sides' . . . is it a mirror image? Could you post a pic of the back? Also, what is the width of the opening? Breezie

Here are some more pictures with measurements
Thanks
Glen

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

I wouldnt be caught dead trying to open my Miller with that .

 

[Davo]

Did anyone notice the letters on this piece? M and R for sure, and maybe A at the top. It's too ornate not to be meant for display. I'm thinking some kind of decorative hanger. Hangs from the top hole and carries cloth or something in the serrated slot. Can't come up with anything myself but thought this might help someone else.

 

[Breezie]

Did anyone notice the letters on this piece? M and R for sure, and maybe A at the top. It's too ornate not to be meant for display. I'm thinking some kind of decorative hanger. Hangs from the top hole and carries cloth or something in the serrated slot. Can't come up with anything myself but thought this might help someone else.

Hello Davo, The Victorian era was extremely flamboyant, and was evident in furniture, decor and almost everything during that period. Bottle openers were not excluded in elegance; there were even Sterling Silver ones with decorative handles. This flamboyance trickled onto the Art Nouveau/Deco period. I think pl8man's find is a bottle opener, and the "R" was probably the initial of the last name of the owner or the initial of the establishment that gave it away as a premium. Just about all expensive flatware during that time was monogrammed. Below is a website of an Art Nouveau opener where the lines had become less ornate, but still note the complexity of the design. Breezie

Victorian Art Nouveau Bottle Opener from molotov on Ruby Lane

Here's a sterling silver one:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ANTIQUE-ORN...D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

Can you try it on a bottle to see if it works? It doesnt seem to have enough leverage but maybe.

It looks like it would grip a strap very well but the hole in the top is odd for a buckle..

 

[pl8man]

Can you try it on a bottle to see if it works? It doesnt seem to have enough leverage but maybe.

It looks like it would grip a strap very well but the hole in the top is odd for a buckle..

Does not fit . Here are some pictures next to a bottle cap .
Glen

 

[Breezie]

I'd certainly liked to be wrong, and your find is some unusual piece. I haven't read the entire patent, but do you think bottle caps were the same size today as they were 121 years ago? If the caps were smaller, do you think your find would open a bottle? Here's the patent dated Feb. 2, 1892:
Patent US468258 - BOTTLE-SEALING DEVICE - Google Patents

Breezie

 

[capt-zero]

I'm thinking it's like that little dodad on a pair of overalls to pull up the slack in the straps.

 

[Pork King]

I wouldnt be caught dead trying to open my Miller with that .

I wouldn't be caught dead opening a Miller.

My first thought was a bottle opener, too. After seeing the pic next to the bottle, now I'm thinking it may be some sort of suspender clasp.

 

[pl8man]

I'd certainly liked to be wrong, and your find is some unusual piece. I haven't read the entire patent, but do you think bottle caps were the same size today as they were 121 years ago? If the caps were smaller, do you think your find would open a bottle? Here's the patent dated Feb. 2, 1892:
Patent US468258 - BOTTLE-SEALING DEVICE - Google Patents

Breezie

If the cap was much smaller it might work .
Glen

 

[nuggy]

With the countersunk screw hole at the top, and fancy monogrammed look, it reminds me of the dispensing slot of a ticket dispenser a roll of tickets was behind and as one ticket came out it was torn off against the serrations. It would have been screwed to a wooden or metal box at a theatre or similar. Just my opinion - Nuggy