Nicolas Pfund
Buttons might seem like a mundane everyday object which is not given much thought, though to a Napoleonic soldier of the 18th/19th century, it held their livelihood together. Buttons are a common fastener for clothing that is found throughout the archaeological record of Ontario. Buttons come in many different shapes, sizes, and materials which reflect their purpose whether that be utilitarian or fashion. One of my hobbies is historical reenactment of a soldier from the Regiment De Meuron which served during the War of 1812 for the British Empire. The uniform I wear includes a variety of historical reproduction buttons which fasten and hold my uniform together. Before we get into that, we need to know more about the buttons themselves.
Buttons are categorized based on material, size, shape, and decoration. Within the Ontario archaeological record, bone, shell, metal and ceramic (prosser which is pressed ceramic) buttons appear the most though other materials can be found including ivory, glass or rubber. The size of buttons can give a general sense of their use. Small 8-15 mm buttons were most commonly associated with shirts but could be found on other garments. Large 16-30 mm+ buttons were most commonly used for coats and jackets. Garments were sold without buttons so it was one’s decision based on their socio-economic status to purchase buttons within their means. Large metal buttons with decoration would be the most expensive, as seen on the cuff of the uniform tunic. Small buttons made of shell or decorated prosser would be more expensive compared to bone.
The shape of the button can also tell us a story. Generally, buttons are either sew-through or shanked. Sew through buttons can be seen on the wrist of the under shirt of the uniform which have holes for the thread to run through. Shanked buttons are those seen everywhere else on the uniform. They are 1 piece concave buttons with a cone shank on the back which the thread runs through. The decoration of buttons can help us understand who was the one wearing them. Bone/shell sew-through buttons can have piecrust or sawtooth designs. Ceramic and metal buttons could be embossed or molded as seen with the De Meuron buttons. Buttons could also be painted, engraved or gilded.
What type of buttons can be found on a uniform of a soldier from the De Meuron regiment? Can you spot them all?
These buttons are found down the center of the regimental coat. They are small 1 piece pewter concave buttons with a cone shank. They have a cast decoration of the regiment name and the royal cypher of King George III. Each regiment had different button decorations, some standard with just the royal cypher, others with the regiment’s number, and some representing different units like grenadiers.
There are 2 different buttons in this picture. First are the large, decorative 1 piece pewter concave buttons with a cone shank on the cuff of the tunic. These buttons like the ones seen earlier are cast with the regiment name and the royal cypher. The other button is found on the cuff of the shirt which is a 1 piece sew-through bone button with 2 eye holes. As mentioned earlier, small buttons are most commonly found on shirts like these.
The trouser buttons in this photo are large 1 piece pewter concave buttons with a cone shank but do not have the decoration like the buttons on the regimental tunic. This is because trousers were standardized and used across all regiments with different colours of wool. Buttons lacking decoration were also cheaper to produce than decorated buttons.
Lastly are the gaiter buttons. Gaiters started as a military accessory meant to protect the laces and ankles from the outside weather conditions. This fashion would evolve to the civilian market during the Victorian times. For this reason, the buttons are worn on the outside of the leg to display the buttons to onlookers. These buttons are similar to those seen on the trousers. They are small 1 piece metal concave buttons with a loop shank.
How do these buttons compare to those we have been finding throughout the field school? The buttons we have been finding are all sew-through buttons with either 2 or 4 eye holes. They are made of bone representing the oldest buttons, shell and prosser the intermediate and modern plastic buttons. As seen, these buttons are more suited for shirts and regular day wear similar to the cuff button found on the uniform’s shirt. To my knowledge, we have yet to find a shanked button though with a couple more days of digging we can still be hopeful.
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