When you find junk isn't really junk..

digger27

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When you find your junk isn't really junk...it's art!

Thought it was trash at first but the more I cleaned it the more the truth came out.


This was made by the J Arthur Limerick Co. Foundry in Baltimore Maryland.
A major foundry that casted plaques and statues that are all over New England and the NE.
Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Maryland and more.


The earliest statue I found is one that is sitting of Chief Justice John Marshall below...dedicated in 1884 and used to be at the US Capital but now sits in front of the supreme court building.
Others down there too, just a few of them that I found, this was a major casting foundry that did this sort of thing for years.


From what I can tell this Limerick guy was an artist and dabbled in paint and other media but eventually got into 3D stuff and sculpting, then casting when he started his foundry.


I have no clue why he made this hair clip, dress clip or whatever it is or when, but the date on the thing could be a big clue.
I found letters on the back the same as what is marked on his statues and plaques so he definitely made it...
J Arthur Limerick Baltimo Md
He marked all his stuff Baltimo...thrifty with letters back then I assume.


This thing was crusty and covered with thick black dirt so I thought just an odd shaped piece of junk at first, then rubbing the back those two pins emerged and then I rubbed hard on the front and saw this was very fancy with scroll work and maybe some lettering.
Later at home I scrubbed and scrubbed and this is what it looks like now.


I am thrilled, this piece of junk was not junk but made by an artist so I am going to call this art.
Seems to be copper plated so a run though my tumbler and I will see if I can get it even better looking than it is now.


Twice in my life I almost threw away great treasure that I thought was junk, a canister shot cannonball and a rare token, this one might not be in that class but it is still cool treasure to me.


Check your finds closely out there...they might have way more history behind them than you think.
 

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Upvote 18
I have horror stories and success stories on this.

An "L" shaped piece of metal wrapped in copper wire tossed. Found out later it was a stacked canon primer. DAAA
Two ugly pieces of metal with points found underwater. Looked like they were broken off something. Trashed Found out they were copper culture conical points. OOPS
Bent piece of copper wire with point. Gave it to a friend. Copper culture fish hook thousands of years old. (I now have found another one)

An ugly pin which I didn't throw away put it in a junk box. Friends over for a party looking at my junk and one saw swords on it. It was totally encrusted in sand. Cleaned it with peroxide and a very nice WW2 German wound badge appeared.

 

The Baltimore 1908 part suggests this was a convention badge. The top pin on the back was to attach the badge to your lapel. The bar below it would have had a ribbon on it. Many fraternal organizations and unions used such badges at their conventions.
 

The Baltimore 1908 part suggests this was a convention badge. The top pin on the back was to attach the badge to your lapel. The bar below it would have had a ribbon on it. Many fraternal organizations and unions used such badges at their conventions.

Thanks...never thought of that...looks like that is exactly what it is.
It's 1903.

I will research with this new info.

You are right on so thank you again.
Gotta be a convention badge like he one below.
Now if I can find that convention I will be even happier.
 

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Congratualtions on the nice relic find and preservation!
 

Congrats on a neat find!
 

Congrats! Good story and it shows once again you never know what it is till you get it home and clean it up.
It looks pretty good cleaned up! Keeper!!
 

Great save and you are right I have cans of some junk I gotta go through, before I toss it out!!!!! Hope I find a hidden gem!!!! Great post!!!
 

Maybe I have a one of a kind pull tab just waiting for me in my junk bucket. Ha. Great save on the pin.
 

Thanks all!
More research shows this company had their same mark and words on many kinds of fraternal and even military medals going back to at least the civil war era.
Seems they casted lots of objects both big and small.
A cool keepsake...in this case nothing turned into a pretty neat something.
 

always double check your junk! I go night hunting a lot and I often find the next day or even a few weeks later that I had found something good. like a civil war tent line tightener, a mouth harp pre 1900's, 1800's lantern parts, all sorts of stuff.
 

Both the Elks and the Oddfellows (I.O.O.F.) held conventions in Baltimore in 1903. My guess is this is from one of them. Now the only question is, did you go back to where you found this and look for the medal that would probably have been suspended at the bottom of the ribbon?
 

Both the Elks and the Oddfellows (I.O.O.F.) held conventions in Baltimore in 1903. My guess is this is from one of them. Now the only question is, did you go back to where you found this and look for the medal that would probably have been suspended at the bottom of the ribbon?


Soon...real soon.
 

Very nice find.
 

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