Confederate Exploded Read Shell

Confederate exploded 10 lb. Read Artillery Shell from Yellow Tavern Battlefield. Click picture and "Detailed Description".

This is an exploded Confederate10 lb. Read Shell. I have a typed description of this shell from the digger (included), who recovered it on his own property. He dug it on the west side of the Yellow Tavern, Virginia Battlefield, across from the area where General Custer and the 5th and 6th Michigan troopers charged.

 

As the battle between Grant and Lee raged at Spotsylvania Court House, the Union cavalry corps under Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan embarked on a cavalry raid against Richmond. After disrupting Lee’s road and rail communications, Sheridan’s cavalry expedition climaxed with the battle of Yellow Tavern on May 11, 1864. The outnumbered Confederate cavalry was defeated, and Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart was mortally wounded.

 

All the pieces were found in a 100' x 100' area and he believes it is a good part of the shell, weighing about 7 1/2 pounds. On the two larger pieces you can see the threads for the fuse. The copper sabot is also present, which is in three pieces. There are 22 pieces to this shell and none of it has been cleaned yet, just washed off with water. This is one of the more difficult Civil War battle sites for recovering artifacts and is where the most famous Cavalry commander of the Civil War lost his life.