2242A

TWO GREAT CHARLESTON SOUTH CAROLINA SLAVE TAGS.

Currency:USD Category:Antiques / Firearms & Armory Start Price:4,000.00 USD Estimated At:8,000.00 - 12,000.00 USD
TWO GREAT CHARLESTON SOUTH CAROLINA SLAVE TAGS.
PLEASE NOTE (9-25-13): Note second tag (which is most rare) is for a "servant". Photo image in catalog depicts only the reverse of this rare tag. See online description which also depicts the front of the tag also. Charleston, South Carolina, was the only city in the antebellum South to issue these tags or badges which had to be worn by any slave that was "hired out". Each year a slave owner who hired out a slave had to pay a tax and the slave had to wear a tag proving the tax had been paid. The greater the skill and training required, the greater the tax. We have offered several great groupings of slave tags in past auctions and now we offer a very rare 1848 "Charleston Neck" servant's tag. "Charleston Neck" was an outer portion of the city of Charleston which issued their own tags only from 1848 to 1850. Tags from this first year are the rarest and only a handful of tags from "Charleston Neck" are known during their entire production. Second tag offered is an 1833 dated "PORTER" in remarkable condition. The occupation of porter was designated as slaves that would serve as drivers, carry cargo and maintain carriages. Both of these tags were excavated near Charleston, South Carolina, by metal detectorists and are among the best examples of either known. CONDITION: "PORTER" tag is very good with chocolate brown patina, as excavated. "Charleston Neck" tag has green patina with background of light colored soil. There are two bend lines seen above and below the word "SERVANT" on this tag that have been flattened and conserved. 4-49312 JS36