Possible "Button From Washington's Coat..." Let me hear yalls take on this button!

[Trash404]

Hello again!

Similar to my last posts, I would like to provide context to how I came across any items I post. I recently came into possession of a few items purchased from an in-person auction up here in the DE/PA area & would like to know more about what I've found... it contained pins, tokens, coins, buttons, & more.

For this post item specifically, it was located in a box labeled "Buttons" which contained... you guessed it.... buttons! haha this one is particularly interesting due to the description written on the 2x2 plastic paper insert that was written by the original owner (unknown). It is stored in a plastic dual compartment 2x2 with a handwritten labeled that states "Button from Washington's coat with FC Hallmark Twice"

Composition: Unknown but NON-Magnetic
Obverse: No legible marking/writing
Reverse: Two hallmark stamps (one on top right & one of the bottom left); Both with "FC[:]" above some sort of flower or sun shaped stamp; Letters & sun/flow/sunflower are all surrounded/encased within a heart-like shape.

I would not know if this is a legit button from Washington's coat nor would I know how to verify it to be true or false, but either way, I think it's a rather interesting find!

I can't find much on the hallmark stamp, but I bet y'all will help me figure it out!

Any/ALL opinions are welcome (actually preferred)! I would love to hear yalls take on this button! Please let me know if I may provide any further information, pictures, etc. but truly ANY guidance &/or information (even fun facts) will be much appreciated!

 

[robertk]

I don't think there is any way to prove whether or not it came from Washington's coat, but it's a nice button either way.

 

[UnderMiner]

Sounds like a story passed down through generations, the button from Washington's coat that great grandpa Leroy attested to and all subsequent generations parroted this claim since. But without any provenance how can anyone be certain of its true origin?

 

[BigWaveDave]

Someone gotta know about that FC stamp

 

[E-Trac-Ohio]

Hard to say one way or another with out a C.O.A.

 

[Trash404]

Someone gotta know about that FC stamp

I know! That’s the thing that I couldn’t find info on at all! Someone has to know

 

[rhedden]

It would be a lot more interesting and informative if it said, "Button found on lawn of Mt. Vernon after paying off the security guards and digging there at 2 AM."

All humor aside, I would love to find a button with hallmarks like that. If there is any connection to George Washington himself, it's got to be the hallmarks. Did he have a personal tailor who monogrammed his uniforms, etc. ?

 

[oldmxrat]

Hope somebody comes up with some answers!

 

[Tesorodeoro]

Is it gold or silver plated? Difficult to tell in the photos.

 

[Red-Coat]

This doesn’t help much, if at all, but I’ve checked every reference publication I have (and there are a lot) for that mark on buttons, metalware and such, but have drawn a blank.

There were at least three American silversmiths (they would have been using coin silver) marking their work with ‘FC’ initials during the relevant period for Washington but no record of them using the initials in a heart-shaped cartouche, nor with that little emblem underneath.

There's also no evidence for them being know as button-makers in a commercial sense, but a special button in coin silver would be outside that kind of categorisation and still a possibility. That's a long shot though.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

With out any provenance, it is simply a nice button.

 

[Trezurehunter]

There's really no way to tell for sure.

 

[releventchair]

Not finding similar buttons or touch marks.

George Washington Rare Personally-Owned Buttons & Handwritten Fragment from 1773, with Provenance.

George Washington Rare Pair of Personally-Owned Buttons & Handwriting fragment from 1773, with Framed Provenance. The display is comprised of two separate pieces. The first being a pair of buttons that were personally owned by George Washington. The second section includes a fragment of a...

www.loriferber.com

The Material Culture of the Presidency

A description of several items of clothing and household items belonging to George Washington

www.mountvernon.org