Civil War Belt, Buckle and Lapel button - any info please

[MacLeod]

Hello All-

What a great site and thanks for letting me chime in.

I was handed down this belt w/ buckle and was wondering why the buckle is somewhat deformed around the edges... what fate did it incur? Overall, it appears to be in good condition. The leather is a bit cracked but fairly pliable. The back of the buckle appears to contain lead??

As you can see there is a Union Civil War Veterans GAR Lapel Button -- the top reads "1861 Veteran 1866"... inside back reads "Pat May 22 1894". I'm guessing it is not part of the belt yet added by whomever collected this?

What is the best way to store this belt to prevent damage / deterioration? Is there much value to this item and are they common? Thanks for letting me ask all these questions.

 

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[High Plains Digger]

That buckle certainly saw some hard times--hope it wasn't while it was being worn! And, by the way, you take some great, clear, close and well lit photos. Well done.

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

MacLeod wrote:
> The back of the buckle appears to contain lead??

Actually, the metal in the back of your (genuine) civil war era US Army Enlisted-Men's buckle is a solder-like alloy. Solder is somewhat harder than pure lead but it is still soft enough to bend when the buckle gets whacked on, or somebody uses the belt and buckle as a flail. The front's edges are also comparatively easily dent-able, because the front is just a thin "shell," made of sheet-brass.

In case you're wondering why solder was used to fill the back of the sheet-brass front of the buckle... solder "sticks" to brass much better than pure lead does.

You asked about its value. In the field of relic-collecting, "Condition" is just as important as Rarity. (As you probably already know, the same is true in the coin collecting field.) Due to the badly-battered condition of the buckle, its dollar-value is greatly diminished. Undamaged, the buckle (without the belt and GAR pin) would be worth about $250 in today's market. But with such extreme damage, the buckle with belt and GAR pin would bring somewhere around $100-$125. (That is because the vast majority of collectors would rather pay $250 for a "nice" one than buy a wrecked one even at a 50%-off price.)

 

[MacLeod]

Thanks for the replies. My imagination runs wild trying to understand for what reason this buckle took it's flailing... I'm sure there is a great story or two buried within its dented appearance... skeletons in the closet. I think it's flaws add "character" and I'm proud to own it. -Cheers and happy hunting

 

[stefen]

It appears that the buckle was polished and any patina was removed...

This too, is a no-no to collectors...

I have a field found CS buckle that's been shot, maybe bent and partially torn by a plow or disc, and is extremely cruddy, yet it has great character...

It's so tempting to make everything look new...gotta fight those urges...