Confederate imported \"snake\" type belt buckle. Snake buckles of the Civil War period were made in a number of different styles. This type, with the circular rosette or \"wheel\" in the center, is among the most desirable. In most instances, the superb British Enfield rifles imported by the Confederacy in great numbers came complete with leather belts, buckles, cartridge boxes, etc. That\'s how they came into widespread use. I recovered this one on my own property in Culpeper County, Virginia in 1977. The location was occupied by part of the Army of Northern Virginia in May- June 1863 following the Battle of Chancellorsville. It was there that General Lee reorganized and refitted his forces prior to embarking on what became the Gettysburg Campaign.

This style is not nearly as sturdy as other designs of snake buckles. The center (snake) pieceswere madequite thin (especially at the curves) and most excavated examples I\'ve seen or recovered have been broken because of it. I\'m sure the acidic soil of Virginia also played a role in thinning this one. However, this particular example isn\'t damaged. The surfaces have a fair amount of pitting from the soil. Has a mixed brown/ tan/ green coloring.

On the normal market, this buckle would easily sell for $600 AND UP. But this is and I\'m not a retail dealer with a lot of money tied-up in it. I have put a very low opening amount on the sale with . The Riker display/ storage case is included. I will ship this FREE by Priority Mail.

I never sold any of my recovered artifacts until acouple of monthsago (not even a bullet.) I\'ve been metal detecting since 1961- over 55 years. I\'m retired from the US Army and am rated as a Permanently & Totally Disabled Veteran due to wounds and injuries received on Active Duty. I also have a Doctorate (Ph.D.) in Military History and postdoctoral study in field archaeology. I pursued this profession for a long time. I decided to finally list some of my private items for sale to supplement my fixed income and clear out some of the little \"treasures\" I\'ve accumulated throughout my very active life.All excavated artifacts I sell were recovered legally. Due to some incidents in which I provided written statements to buyers, supposedly for their own records but actually intended to jack up the prices when they resold the items, then trying to get me in the middle of their transactions, I must decline to do so or provide any information beyond what\'s in the listing. buyers/ buyer must be aware that this is an excavated historical artifact that is over 150 years old. It is delicate and should not be handled, carried around, or played with. It has already been as cleaned, washed, brushed, etc as it should be, according to professional/ academic archaeological preservation standards. No additional \"cleaning\" of any type should be undertaken. Further, any alteration to the condition of the item, no matter how slight - under Federal law and the policies of both and Paypal -- voids all return/ refund options. Before I offered anything for sale I heard horror stories of the harassment, threats, and terror tactics of the retail dealers and their cronies against people like me who refuse to do business with them. This has proven to be true. HOWEVER- EVERY HIGH-VALUE ITEM I EVER BOUGHT FROM A RETAIL \"EXPERT\" DEALER TURNED OUT TO BE A FAKE!!! AND THE ONLY FAKES I EVER GOT SCAMMED ON WERE BOUGHT FROM THESE SO-CALLED \"EXPERTS,\" \"BATTLEFIELD HISTORIANS,\" OR WHATEVER OTHER MADE-UP TITLE THEY GIVE THEMSELVES!!! Some even came with \"Letters Of Authenticity\" from another so-called \"expert.\" For many years I\'ve adamantly refused to sell to them, consign thru them, or be associated with any of them in any way. I\'ve been called as an Expert Witness against a number of them in their civil and criminal trials in State and Federal Courts for their slimy activities. I will be listing a number of Civil War artifacts for sale this week so check my other sales!