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MODEL 1841 DRAGOON
ENLISTED PATTERN STEEL SPURS – A VERY RARE PAIR - WELL
DOCUMENTED:
This
matched pair of Model
1841 Dragoon Enlisted Pattern Steel Spurs is one of the
rarest of the early Dragoon era horse equipments, and
the only pair known to have been discovered in the
context of other Dragoon equipment that allowed this
pattern to be identified. This is the pair of M1841
Spurs pictured on page 19, and on the cover of, The
American Military Spur by R. Stephen Dorsey.
This pair was discovered
on Bannerman’s Island in the remnants of military
equipment remaining just prior to the island’s
condemnation by the State of New York. A small group of
collectors had arranged to have access to the island and
castle to do some last minute scrounging. They found
that the top floor of the tower had been used to store
the “less desirable” saddles and had been exposed to the
elements for years due to a collapsed roof. It was on
this top floor the collectors found stacks of Ringgold
and Grimsley Dragoon saddles, but time, Mother Nature
and the resident crows and buzzards had combined to
affect the perfect tragedy – these valuable relics had
been rendered into useless relics. However, as a result
of this exploration, this pair of Model 1841 Spurs was
found wired to one of the equipment rings on the remains
of a M1847 Grimsley Dragoon saddle. Only one other pair
of these rare spurs are known to exist, that pair also
having been traced back and determined to have been
obtained from Bannerman's in the mid 20th
Century.
The Ordnance Manual of
1841 described the spur as “Spurs, wrought iron,
japanned black: the plate attached to the heel of the
boot by a point behind and 2 screws at the sides – the
shank – the rowel (steel).” While this style of spur
incorporated the “screw and spike” attachment method
without any leather straps, the heel spike not only
limited the movement of the spur and would cause the
spur to hang on debris as the soldier walked through
rough terrain, the spike also levered against the layers
of leather used to construct the boot heel, in effect
tearing the heel apart. The aggravation caused by the
heel spike was well documented in military
correspondence of the period. So it is not surprising
that the heel spikes on this pair of spurs are missing
and upon close inspection it is evident the spikes were
intentionally broken off flush with the heel plate to
relieve these problems. The balance of the spurs are
full form, with all the screw holes intact, the heel
plates, shanks and rowels all holding their shape and
showing little if any wear. The steel surface is smooth
with only very minor, scattered pitting in isolated
areas and the rowels are both complete with all their
points and spin freely.
The Model 1841 Enlisted
Spur was the issued pattern for a very short period,
replaced in 1847 with the introduction of the Grimsley
Horse Equipments which included a new pattern of spur.
This short life span in the army’s inventory, coupled
with the limited number of mounted soldiers during this
period, resulted in a low production and an obviously
low survival in today’s collections. This offering,
direct from an old collection of Dragoon equipment, is
not likely to be seen again and might very well be a
once in a lifetime opportunity to add such a rare set of
spurs to your collection. $1200
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