Button
DateLate 18th c.
Artist/Maker
Mrs. William Meredith
MediumCopper alloy
DimensionsDia: 1 5/16"
Credit LineGift of Mrs. William Meredith.
Object number1971-12
DescriptionSuit button: Tombac (white metal) disc with applied convex center; hand chased or engine-turned design of interlocking circles; soldered brass or tombac shank.Label TextMen’s suit coats had numerous buttons, some for fastening the coat closed, but most for decoration. Some coats had as many as thirty buttons down the coat front, on the cuffs, on or beneath the pocket flaps, and on the pleats at the rear of the coat. Suit buttons came in a wide variety of materials and styles to achieve a glittering, rich effect. Women used fewer buttons, except on man-tailored jackets, such as riding habits, because their clothing was usually pinned or laced closed.
ProvenanceDonor is a button collector and member of the Betsy Ross Button Club of Pennsylvania, founded in 1943. See correspondence in object folder.
Exhibition(s)
1780-1800.
Late 18th c.
1770-1790.
1790-1810
ca. 1970
1780-1800
1755-1765
1994
1740-1770
1736-1737
1770-1790.
Style of eighteenth century