🔎 UNIDENTIFIED Civilian(?) Buckle Help, Please.

[fyrffytr1]

Can anyone tell me anything about this brass buckle that was dug in Maryland about 30 years back?

 

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[vpnavy]

If no one can identify your find - you might consider posting your picture on RELIC HUNTING > BUCKLES for additional exposure...

 

[DCMatt]

The condition is remarkable for a dug relic. Nothing about it says "military" to my eye. It seems rather light duty for a belt buckle...

 

[Tpmetal]

The condition is remarkable for a dug relic. Nothing about it says "military" to my eye. It seems rather light duty for a belt buckle...

The lack of attachment points is odd as well

 

[Blackfoot58]

Looks a lot like the hat buckles we see on pilgrim hats at Thanksgiving. 🤷‍♂️

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

Note that this buckle's center-bar has a small flange (projection) on each side of the tongue. These flanges' purpose is to keep the tongue well-centered while somebody tries to use the buckle "under rough working conditions."

Those "centering flanges" start showing up in the very late 1800s. I've never seen them on any civil war era buckle, neither Military nor Civilian. They became quite common by the mid-1900s.

Due to the obvious flimsiness of the (missing) attachment points (hooks/loops/bar, etc.), I'd have to say it is a Civilian buckle

 

[ArfieBoy]

Cool find! Thanks for sharing.

 

[Almy]

I can visualize this on the belt of a lady's coat.

 

[fyrffytr1]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I figured the belt would attach to the buckle like the one in this picture. It is a fairly sturdy buckle.

 

[fyrffytr1]

I need to make a correction to my post above. The buckle is not sturdy. It will bend easily at the narrow sides.

 

[Tpmetal]

I need to make a correction to my post above. The buckle is not sturdy. It will bend easily at the narrow sides.

Maybe it had a backing metal of some sort at some point? How big is the loop in the center there? Enough to go around a plate of another metal?

 

[fyrffytr1]

Maybe it had a backing metal of some sort at some point? How big is the loop in the center there? Enough to go around a plate of another metal?

The tongue's(?) loop is not big enough to go through another piece of metal.