Buttons

deedubs

Jr. Member
Nov 18, 2014
48
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Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Can anybody provide any insight into these buttons, roughly how old are they and where on the clothing would they be worn? I know that the dragon one is a livery button, is there any way to find out which family this would have been associated with?
They were all found at the same site which is a plantation house from the 1700's.



IMG_20141119_175536.jpgIMG_20141119_175621.jpgIMG_20141119_175639.jpgIMG_20141119_180027.jpg

The first two pics are the same button, its silver plated and has some sort of back mark but unfortunately I can't make it out.
The gold button is the front of a two piece. Back is missing.
The livery button has no back mark at all.
 

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Using T-Net's supermagnification option, your Livery button's standing dragon seems to be holding a five-fingered glove in its mouth. The only Livery button here:
https://sites.google.com/site/liverybuttonsidentified/home/dragons-and-wyverns
which shows a standing dragon holding a 5-fingered glove in its mouth is the livery symbol of the Herbert family of Salop (Shropshire), England.
https://5a34aba1-a-62cb3a1a-s-sites...aufakKAXLe4VNySa0An2lHXag8J9w=&attredirects=0

Your silverplated brass 1-piece button with a RAISED-lettering (not indented-lettering) backmark is a civilian-usage "Fashion-clothing" button made sometime between about 1790 through the 1830s.

Your goldplated brass 2-piece button missing its back appears to be a generic civilian-usage "Naval-Motif" button. Most navy-anchor buttons show a rope with the anchor, whereas yours has a chain (instead of a rope), which indicates it is a civilian-clothing imitation of the 1774-1787 British Royal Navy's Captains-&-Commanders button. Being from 1774-to-1787 that was strictly a 1-piece button, but yours with its back missing is definitely a 2-piece button.
Diana's Buttons - Reference - British Navy Buttons

After-posting edit:
In a followup post you asked "What is the significance of raised v's indented lettering?" To have any chance of answering that question correctly, I need to see a couple of well-focused closeup photos of what you're talking about.
 

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Wow.. Thanks so much for all the info.. I had been trying to research it myself but didn't have much luck. I have one more stupid question..what is the significance of raised v's indented lettering?
 

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Good ID, I to use that livery button site - good ref
 

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