1800 – 1850 US ARMY OFFICER’S
BRIDLE ORNAMENTS – MATCHED PAIR IN EXCELLENT “LIKE NEW”
CONDITION – A VERY RARE OFFERING:
Obtained from the same old collection which produced the
South Carolina Officer’s Bridle Set listed on this site,
this matched pair of U.S. Army and State Militia
Officer’s Bridle Ornaments feature the design of the
National Martial Eagle which dates as early as the first
decade of the 1800’s and was in use as late as the
1850’s. This same style of eagle insignia appears on
the cockade decorating the uniform Chapeau worn by
Brigadier General Peter Gansevoort during the War of
1812. This
spread winged eagle continued in use on officer and
enlisted men’s hat buttons and front plates, breast
plates, cartridge box plates and belt plates well into
the 1850’s.
Measuring just
over 1 ˝” in diameter, and fitted with a brass wire
standing loop on the lead filled reverse, these brass
medallions still retain much of their original gilt
finish. Both medallions are in excellent condition with
no misshaping or wear. When I acquired the pair, they
were (and still are) joined by a small tag which bears a
handwritten notation that the pair were found as “new
old stock” in the inventory of the Stokes Kirk Uniform
supply store in Philadelphia. Stokes Kirk was one of the
pillars of the American military surplus market from
1874 through its closing in 1976.
This pair of
ornaments would have been appropriate decoration on the
crown of the bridle on the horses ridden by any officer
in the regular U.S. Army or in any of the State Militias
of the period. Matched pairs of these early bridle
ornaments are extremely rare, and whether they are used
to enhance an existing antebellum bridle or displayed on
their own, this pair will be a valuable and very special
addition to your collection. (0921) $425
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