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Rare James Monroe Back-Name Clothing Button Extremely Rare James Monroe Back-Name Clothing Button.

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Historical Memorabilia Start Price:1.00 USD Estimated At:1,000.00 - 2,000.00 USD
Rare James Monroe Back-Name Clothing Button Extremely Rare James Monroe Back-Name Clothing Button.
<B>Extremely Rare James Monroe Back-Name Clothing Button.</B></I> A very important piece, both to political and clothing button collectors, it is not listed either by Sullivan of Albert. The front is blank, while the back has two concentric bands. The outer band has "Monroe" in incused letters, with a vine of leaves completing the perimeter. Around the shank are the words "extra strong." We have never seen one of these before, and did not know of its existence. It fits, of course, into the tradition of political back-name buttons generally thought to have begun with various varieties for Andrew Jackson. As any political collector knows, period Monroe items are prohibitively rare. <BR><BR>This is a brass button, but it was long in the ground, and has an even patina of thin surface corrosion. The original shank seems to have been replaced, and then the replacement shank also broke off (perhaps the occasion which caused it to be thrown to the ground). Perhaps not a very esthetically pleasing piece, but certainly an important one. Diameter 19mm.