Great find!
Evolving from German gun builders in America through customer demands and during different eras there were regional "schools" of influence.
From Jaegers through golden age long rifles that looked like art more than function there were distinct features. Compared to trade guns (Dutch club butts to, French , to English, and who else?) of varied countries and utilitarian purpose.
Pa. rifles. Tenn. rifles. Ohio rifles. All had historic pedigrees of one sort or another.
Of course firearms traveled and inspired designs.
But more , builders had creative liberty at times.
Subtle but as recognizable as a brand name.
Trigger guards were one such area.
A quick file work and a tang has a new shape . One I had was a pineapple on one end of the guard and a liberty cap on the other of recalled correctly.
That was on a 1600's inspired Leigh Valley Pa. school of build rifle. Just past mid century.
A builder could cast brass in house.
Or depending on locale and purse buy parts.
They could still as above make them custom/unique to a given builder.
Brass being scarce at times could be recycled. As could parts.
Now and them a group of metal objects turns up that seem to be a resource more than any one objects parts. Making a single gun part tricky. More so one that shouldn't ordinarily be free to wander away from it's host.
Oh it could and likely did happen somewhere.
Back when in the day(s) ; such found would likely get picked up. Or stashed where recoverable again.
Chase eras and schools and pics to ty to match the trigger guard.
Allow some creative license if no an exact match.
A user annoyed at something that catches could modify a guard easy enough as well.
Watch widths. A certain guard might flare below the trigger a lot but still be consistent it's whole length where the stock is inlet to house it.Use that to start formulating a likely era.
Your stingy pictures don't tell me if the piece was pinned or screwed to secure it.
I don't see tabs for pin holes but...Can't really see regardless.
Here's a pic of some repro's of some alleged Golden Age guards.
Note the tabs allowing pin holes to be drilled.
But too the plain surface a smith could shape like yours if desired.
The front tang (towards barrel of rifle) you'll recognize in Eastern patterns. Start with Pa. maybe if a chase down the rabbit hole is desired.
