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CIVIL
WAR OFFICERS BRASS BOUND McCLELLAN SADDLE FROM A NEW YORK ESTATE:
A scarce offering of a Civil War Brass Bound Officer’s
Saddle recently
purchased at an estate sale in the Buffalo, New York
area. Unfortunately, only minimal family information was
obtained at the time of the sale which was
not sufficient to identify the officer who owned this
saddle.
This
McClellan Saddle is in excellent condition and is a
classic example of a Civil War officer’s private
purchase saddle. The saddle features a very sharp
pommel with a narrow gullet, and a cantle that is set at
a lower angle than the cantle on a standard M1859
McClellan. The black leather covered seat is finished
on the crests of the pommel and cantle with brass
moldings that have a nice soft, mellow patina. The
faces of the pommel and cantle, and the underside of the
side bars are all covered in black leather as well. The
saddle is fitted with black glove leather skirts
attached to the seat with brass screws. The off side,
or right side skirt has an area of wear at the bottom
edge of the skirt, likely caused by chaffing of the “D”
ring, the rider’s leg, or some piece of equipment. This
area does not detract from the quality appearance of the
saddle and serves as a testament to the saddle’s
service. All of these leather surfaces are smooth,
shiny and supple with no crazing. The original quarter
straps are present, complete and unbroken and they are
joined on each side of the saddle with a brass-faced
iron non-spaded “D” ring. The use of brass-faced “D”
rings is unusual and speaks to the quality of the saddle
and reinforces the point that these officer’s saddles
were private purchase pieces and were outfitted
according to the scope of the imagination and the depth
of the pocket book of the owner. The original stirrup
leathers and the leather hooded stirrups are present and
their appearance and construction lead me to believe
that they are original to this saddle. The straps are
solid and unbroken and the stirrup hoods and frame are
intact with no splits in the frames. Here again, the
stirrups feature an unusual characteristic of being
hooded with a double thickness of light leather and
appear to have had a textured surface. The saddle has
all four equipment rings present, held with barrel
staples on the four extensions of the side bars.
Brass
bound Civil War Officer’s saddles are seldom offered on
the open
market today, and this beautiful specimen will be a true
center piece for your collection. $3150
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