Collection Highlights
Kast
Date:
1675-1690
Object Number:
1941.914
Medium:
Walnut, walnut veneer, elm, oak, ebony
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Museum Collections
Historical Artifacts
British military buttons (27) excavated at a Revolutionary War camp
Object Number:
INV.6142.4-30
Date:
1770-1783
Medium:
Pewter
Dimensions:
largest: 1 in. ( 2.5 cm )
Marks:
stamped: (4-26), on face of button: "57" (57th British Regiment; many of these buttons have roped border designs)
stamped: (27), face: "10" (10th British Regiment)
stamped: (28), face: "RP" (Royal Provincials; British crown above number)
stamped:
Description:
Pewter military buttons; solid pewter buttons with the number, emblem, or symbol of their regiment on front; many have roped border designs and one has a crown above its regiment number.
Gallery Label:
These buttons were excavated by Reginald P. Bolton and others before the formation of the Field Exploration Committee at a sanitary camp that extended east of Broadway, between 196th and Ellwood Streets. The camp was built in the summer of 1779 to quarantine soldiers infected with a fever that was sweeping through the military camps in Washington Heights. The buttons were worn on the uniforms of British privates who were sent to the camp.
Credit Line:
Gift of the Washington Headquarters Association, Daughters of the American Revolution, 1947
Due to ongoing research, information about this object is subject to change.
