Pearl Button 18th Century
Date: 1830-1850
Inventory Number: MUS-117-0023a
Classification: Button
Place of Origin:
Dimensions:
3 3/16 × 3 3/16 × 5/16 in. (8.1 × 8.1 × 0.8 cm)
Description:
Hand-cut nautilus shell (mother-of-pearl) sewing button.Steel plate back with glass jewel topped pin shank extending through pearl and backplate into a loop shank in brass collect. Gold foil under pierced sawthooth openings. Engraved with conventional designs and carved scalloped boarder. Condition is fair, pin shank is loose causing steel backplate to move. There is minor corrosion and scratches on steel backplate. Small chip to shell to back only.
In Collection(s)
Signedunsigned
FunctionButton for clothing - likley a man’s coat.
Curatorial RemarksPaste pin is loose causing the back steel plate to move. Gold foil has some deterioration (flaking). Shell is slightly unevenin width but this is not a chip. This may be a result of wear over time or due to the originl handcarving. Until 1850 only men wore this type of luxury button (Hughes and Lester).
ProvenanceRobin C. Larner, Rochester, NY
Nina Plaushin, Alexandria, VA
Nina Plaushin, Alexandria, VA
Published ReferencesThe Big Book of Buttons, Elizabeth Hughes and Marion Lester, Second Edition, Volume 1, 2010, St. Johann, Plate No. 97 (Nos. 4 &19), Page 392. Images of very similar button with description.