Brass Zouave Ball Button with thread from battlefield

Zouave button with original thread from battlefield. Click photo and "Detailed Description".

This small Zouave button has a diameter of approximately 1/2" and still has the original shank remaining on the reverse, and what is really unique is that some of the original thread remains. It was recovered many years ago at the Wilderness, Virginia Battlefield.

The Battle of the Wilderness, fought from May 5 to May 7, 1864, was the first battle of Lt. General Ulysses S. Grant’s 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign against General Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. Both armies suffered heavy casualties, a prelude of a bloody war of attrition against Lee's army and, eventually, the Confederate capital, Richmond, Virginia. The battle was tactically inconclusive, as Grant disengaged and continued his offensive. 

An example of this button is in Time/Life Arms and Equipment of the Union (see pictures). This unique button remains in very nice condition with a beautifully aged patina to the brass.