RARE – Confederate Tin Canteen, made by a local Southern tinsmith

Being offered is a rare Confederate tin canteen. It is very unique, having a diameter of 6 ½” and only 1” wide. The crude folded tin spout is 1” high with a diameter of ½” and it has three narrow sling loops with a leather cord going through them.

The sides are flat but have been pushed in as a result of  extended use. One of the sides has what appears to be a paper circle that probably been on it for over a century. Nothing is visible on it, but my guess is that at one time it had some kind of provenance or even a painted scene. I show a picture of a different canteen that has a similar circle on it (see pictures).

This canteen has definitely seen quite a bit of action. It shows the desperation of the Confederacy for supplies, having crude repairs to stop it from leaking. I wrote several books on canteens and have over 250 in my personal collection, but this is the first one I came across one like this – it was probably made by a local southern tinsmith. This would make a great addition to any Civil War collection.