USNM 66330-M (S-K 86). Figure 1.
Figure 1
The first known distinctive metal branch insignia authorized for the Army was this helmet plate. General Order, U.S. Army, dated March 30, 1800, prescribed for "Cavalry ... a helmet of leather crowned with black horse hair and having a brass front, with a mounted dragoon in the act of charging."[36] This oval plate, struck in thin brass with lead-filled back, has a raised rim, within which is a mounted, helmeted horseman in the act of charging; overhead is an eagle with a wreath in its beak. A double-wire fastener soldered to the back is not contemporary.
DRAGOON HELMET PLATE, 1800, DIE SAMPLE
USNM 60283-M (S-K 41). Figure 2.
Figure 2