NY Militia/CW Belt Plate!

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06-05-2018, 08:06 PM
BTV Digger

3 Attachment(s)

NY Militia/CW Belt Plate!

Saw they'd cut a hay field I have permission for and had yet to hit this spring. Farmer said it had been heavily metal detected through the years and true to form there were only limited targets. I did pull a nice ornate coat button with a flower pattern, then got a screamer at 8 inches that I almost didn't dig (thought it was another can). Nope. New York militia/Civil War belt plate baby! I still can't believe it. At least I think it's CW - experts please chime in. Thanks for looking.

John

Attachment 64411 Attachment 64412 Attachment 64413
06-05-2018, 08:33 PM
Lodge Scent

What a nice looking plate you got there John. Congrats!
06-05-2018, 08:38 PM
Full Metal Digger

Simply beautiful plate! I would get that restored in a heartbeat! Congrats on finding such a great relic where others have failed. HH, Dave.
06-05-2018, 09:34 PM
Digger_O'Dell

Wow John, awesome find! It's also frosting on the cake to pull something like that from someplace that's been hunted to death already. Makes you wonder how the heck did they miss it?
06-05-2018, 10:01 PM
Cheap Thrills

:congrats:
06-05-2018, 10:56 PM
fyrffytr1

Beautiful belt plate! Please post a picture of the back. I think it is earlier than the civil war but could have seen action in the war. That plate was manufactured around 1850. It should be about 2.2X3.1 inches and weigh about 1 1/2 ounces.
06-06-2018, 06:11 AM
Donnie B

Beautiful Plate! Congratulations! I could look it up in my book. Can I see a photo of the back?
06-06-2018, 06:12 AM
rharris

Holy Moly! Or something like that! Awesome job. Congrats!
06-06-2018, 06:14 AM
BTV Digger

1 Attachment(s)

Thanks a lot guys! Here's a shot of the reverse. Should have included it from the start.

Attachment 64414
06-06-2018, 07:49 AM
del

What a spectacular belt plate John :loveit::smitten:you couldn't ask for better patina coloration !! The plate is a New York Militia from 1850 to 1860 (definitely Civil War era :cheering:) The design is a rendition of the 1777 New York coat of arms with Liberty and justice supporting a shield containing a sunrise over the Hudson river. Its rays blanket the entire background while an eagle crest is perched on a globe overhead. The banner of the state's motto "Excelsior" is draped around the lower part of the shield .

Great find John !:notworthy:

Dan
06-06-2018, 08:03 AM
Tony Two-Cent

What a wonderful piece of history! That metal held up really well in the soil. Way to find an amazing relic that everyone else missed!

:congrats:
06-06-2018, 10:01 AM
chief5709

:notworthy::notworthy::notworthy::notworthy:
06-06-2018, 01:28 PM
OxShoeDrew

Can't beat that!! Wonderful, John!!
06-06-2018, 06:30 PM
BTV Digger

Quote:

Originally Posted by del

What a spectacular belt plate John :loveit::smitten:you couldn't ask for better patina coloration !! The plate is a New York Militia from 1850 to 1860 (definitely Civil War era :cheering:) The design is a rendition of the 1777 New York coat of arms with Liberty and justice supporting a shield containing a sunrise over the Hudson river. Its rays blanket the entire background while an eagle crest is perched on a globe overhead. The banner of the state's motto "Excelsior" is draped around the lower part of the shield .

Great find John !:notworthy:

Dan

Thanks for such detailed information Dan! I knew you'd have more background info.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony Two-Cent

What a wonderful piece of history! That metal held up really well in the soil. Way to find an amazing relic that everyone else missed!

:congrats:

Thanks Tony! Yeah, all I did was to use a fine wire brush with warm water and it came out looking about as good as I could hope for. As you can see there's a big plow blade slash in it, but I like it just the way it is.

Quote:

Originally Posted by chief5709

:notworthy::notworthy::notworthy::notworthy:

Thanks Brian!

Quote:

Originally Posted by OxShoeDrew

Can't beat that!! Wonderful, John!!

Nope. That's my find of the year Drew. Thanks!
06-06-2018, 11:49 PM
Noah

I would restore it and then be very tempted to actually wear it. It would look very cool with a worn out pair of Bluejeans.
06-07-2018, 02:05 PM
Digger Don

What a beautiful piece of American history!!:clapping: I kinda like it the way it is. Adds character!:congrats:
06-07-2018, 04:13 PM
aloldstuff

WOW what a find. John you did real good digging that one. Really consider getting it restored. :perfect10:
06-07-2018, 07:20 PM
DavidGC

John -You are killing' it this year! Congrats.
If everyone who was in that field missed something that big, I bet there's other stuff still waiting to be found.
06-08-2018, 06:22 AM
calabash digger

that is a great find!
06-08-2018, 08:19 PM
BTV Digger

Quote:

Originally Posted by Noah

I would restore it and then be very tempted to actually wear it. It would look very cool with a worn out pair of Bluejeans.

Ha ha. Interesting thought! I think I'm gonna leave it as is though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Digger Don

What a beautiful piece of American history!!:clapping: I kinda like it the way it is. Adds character!:congrats:

Thanks Don! I still can't believe I dug it. Almost doesn't seem real...sorta like some of those big silvers you've been digging.

Quote:

Originally Posted by aloldstuff

WOW what a find. John you did real good digging that one. Really consider getting it restored. :perfect10:

Thanks Al! Yeah, I'm not sure I'll get it restored. I sorta like it just the way it is with the plow cut and all.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidGC

John -You are killing' it this year! Congrats.
If everyone who was in that field missed something that big, I bet there's other stuff still waiting to be found.

Thanks David! The field has been metal detected by a guy multiple times so says the farmer. There actually weren't many good targets there, though lots of iron. The signal sounded like a deep can but as I came off the target the sound didn't give that customary squelch that a can does...it was more clean. That convinced me just enough to give it a shot and dig. So glad I did.

Quote:

Originally Posted by calabash digger

that is a great find!

Thanks Calabash!