Ridgeway Civil War Research Center A virtual examination of artifacts of the American Civil War
	Civil War Plates and Buckles
	by Harry Ridgeway

Plate5599-Ohio-551-FAKE-FANTASY-REPRODUCTION Ohio-FAKE-FANTASY-REPRODUCTION Ohio, oval plate Research Center: Plate5599-Ohio-551-FAKE-FANTASY-REPRODUCTION . Details click: http://relicman.com/plates/Plate5599-Ohio-551-FAKE-FANTASY-REPRODUCTION.html

P3488 ### F1488 OVM boxplate, large size This one is too close for my liking. This example is overfilled and uses brass hooks. I also got this out of a sutler box for $10, so know for sure this is repro. I also put it outside and it easily patined. One should assume that this may exist as an example and I doubt if all are overfilled. It is a dangerous example and I do not know who made it. Do not go by patina, as this one turned dark with not much effort. It is fake, I am certain.Buckle measures 54mm x 84mm Editor note: Plate was obtained directly from a sutler, and was sold as a re-enactment supply. Research Center: Plate5599-Ohio-551-FAKE-FANTASY-REPRODUCTION . P3488 F1488 Picture only submitted.

P1916 ### P1916 ### OVM Bad Shape cast plate very much messed with, completely bogus, Photo only, not purchased. Research Center: Plate5599-Ohio-551-FAKE-FANTASY-REPRODUCTION . Meyers Kevin

P2144 ### P2144 ### OVM buckle measures width-81mm, height-53mm, weight-123gmsMy name is Sylvan Peursum. We recently purchased 2 Civil War belt buckles SNY and OVM as part of an estate. We listed them on ebay and the bidding took off. However, we received a couple of messages from well-meaning ebayers who told us our buckles are not right. We contacted the high bidders and told them of the concerns about the buckles and one of the high bidders insisted they were right and suggested that those questioning our buckles might be interested in us ending the auction so they can get them at a cheaper bid. He referred us to you. I'm sending you this note in hopes that you might help us understand more what we have.I do not think these plates are authentic. They appear to be cast plates, may have a thin coat of lead on the back to give them the appearance of lead filled. The lettering is not quite right and the hooks are not right. Both of these plates seem to have come from the same maker, the originals did not actually come from a common maker as best as we can tell. The originals were fairly thin, stamped from a brass sheet, then the hooks were embedded in a solder filling. It is difficult to tell for certain from the photos, but it looks like these are artificially aged, and that there may be a thin coat of lead or solder on the back to give them the appearance of being solder filled. If you take something sharp and scratch the surface along the edge (do not make a big scratch), you may find that the edge is indistinct and that there is yellow brass just below the surface. If original you should see the distinct thin edge of stamped sheet, if these are cast and then the back ground out to fill with a thin coat of lead, the edge will not be distinct and the lead will be thin. However depending on how carefully the maker milled the edge and how deep the lead filling is may make this difficult to diagnose. Then we come back to identical aged patina, which is very irregular, similarity of the letters and it appears both plates are too thick. This is where we meet up with the possibility of a clever fake and the limits of photography. Your pictures are good enough, but determining the actual content of the metal and detecting the minute milling etc may take an examination, under magnification. So my opinion, based solely on the photographs, and without actual examination, is that these are repros, or more to the point clever fakes. Research Center: Plate5599-Ohio-551-FAKE-FANTASY-REPRODUCTION . Peursum Sylvan

P2986 ### P2986 ### OVM SS Firearms SS Firearms advertisement: Part Number: BB10 OHIO VOLUNTEER MILITIA (OVM) BELT PLATE. Die Stamped Brass, 3 Prongs for Attaching to Belt. Lead Filled, Reproduction. Part Number: BB11 OHIO VOLUNTEER MILITIA (OVM) CARTRIDGE BOX PLATE. Die Stamped Brass, 2 Loops For Cartridge Box Flap. Lead Filled, Reproduction. Research Center: Plate5599-Ohio-551-FAKE-FANTASY-REPRODUCTION . SS Firearms

P3264 ### F1264 OVM oval buckleSource: this buckle was submitted to me for second opinion. The person who sent me the pictures had already condemned the buckle.Editor note: I told my source that I agreed with his diagnosis. I think this may be a die stamped plate, but the die is not quite right and the hooks are not right either. I cannot tell from the pictures which size this is, but this is the wrong die for the small size buckle, and the hooks are wrong, and the patina stinks, there is not much to like about this buckle. Research Center: Plate5599-Ohio-551-FAKE-FANTASY-REPRODUCTION . P3264 F1264 Picture only submitted.

P3314 ### P3314 ### (F1314) ### OVM box plate Research Center: Plate5599-Ohio-551-FAKE-FANTASY-REPRODUCTION . P3314 F1314 Picture only submitted.

P3390 ### P3390 ### (F1390) ### OVM box plate Research Center: Plate5599-Ohio-551-FAKE-FANTASY-REPRODUCTION . P3390 F1390 Picture only submitted.

P3411 ### P3411 ### (F1411) ### OVM box plate Research Center: Plate5599-Ohio-551-FAKE-FANTASY-REPRODUCTION . P3411 F1411 Picture only submitted.

This is the "Ridgeway Civil War Research Center", a research tool for educational purposes only, and is provided at no cost to the reader. Some of the relics listed are retained in the author's collection, most reside in other collections and are not owned by the author. None of the items listed in this section are for sale, please refer to relicman.com sales listings for items offered for sale. This is a work in progress, I list items as I get to them, there are many patterns that are not listed yet, this list will be regularly updated as I get pictures and descriptions for more items. I will also correct mistakes, so if you see any please tell me. All items listed are believed to be authentic to the Civil War or as otherwise described. Any excavated relics have been recovered from private property with owners permission.This information is available for research purposes, pictures may be used by permission only.

Most information on this page is from:
Plates and Buckles of the American Military 1795 - 1874, by Sydney C. Kerksis.
Confederate Belt Buckles & Plates, by Steve E Mullinax.
American Military Belt Plates, by Michael J. O'Donnell & J.Duncan Campbell.

Ridgeway Civil War Research Center, A virtual examination of artifacts of the American Civil War Plates and buckles Research center, plates, click: http://relicman.com/plates/Plate0000-Index.html. Research center, plates and buckles, click: http://relicman.com/plates/Plate0000-Index.html.

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Civil War Relicman, Harry Ridgeway, Civil War plates and buckles, Relicman sales catalog. Sale listings click: http://relicman.com/plates/Relicman-Sales-Plate0000.html. Sale listings click: http://relicman.com/plates/Relicman-Sales-Plate0000.html.