Sought-after brass shank button issued for the presidential inauguration of George Washington, 1.75″ in diameter, with the front featuring a central eagle encircled with engraved text: “March the Fourth, 1789 Memorable Era.” Reverse retains the original shank.
It has been majoritively accepted that this button was made shortly before March 4, 1789, the day Washington's inauguration was originally scheduled. Likewise, it is believed that Washington's inaugural suit of brown cloth from the Hartford Manufactory was adorned with gilt buttons decorated with an eagle by the engraver William Rollinson. However, no surviving examples have been located, and no direct relation between those buttons and the ‘Dated Eagle’ type offered here has been established.
