Figure 119
The very unusual construction of this brass plate for riflemen indicates that it is possibly one of the earliest of the composite plates. Within a wreath of crossed laurel boughs is a small center circle with raised edge to which has been soldered the eagle and horn device struck in convex form.
CAP PLATE, RIFLEMEN, C. 1830
USNM 60252-M (S-K 10). Figure 120.
Figure 120
The diamond-shaped plate was in vogue with Militia units during the late 1820's and the 1830's. Examples of such plates for the Washington Grays (Philadelphia) and the Philadelphia Grays are recorded in U.S. Military Magazine.[105] This brass plate, possibly made for a particular unit from stock dies, is a typical example of the endless variety possible with the use of a few dies. The blank was struck with a die for the center device of eagle and horn, but the irregularity of the spacing of the stars shows that they were added later by hand. Similar plates may be found with essentially this same device, but placed on small shields or backgrounds of other shapes.
CAP PLATE, C. 1835
USNM 604851-M (S-K 996). Figure 121.