Even without its Georgia box plate affixed, the Cartridge Box shown here is easily distinguishable from its Yankee counterpart by the bulbous brass closure finial, iron sling buttons and single tin liner. The box was manufactured as a musket box (as opposed to a rifle box) for use with an over the shoulder sling. Once his cartridge box was slung, the soldier then wrapped its matching accoutrement belt, loaded with a percussion cap box and a bayonet scabbard, around it, thus locking all of his accoutrements together. This allowed him to get in and out of it faster, and kept it from swinging when marching or charging.

The box is 100% original, complete, strong and supple with the exception of the outer latch tab. The Georgian who carried it would have had his gun tool and worm, and probably a few other odds and ends, stored in the tool pouch. It is a great Southern cartridge box in its own right, but even more, it still has its original white web over the shoulder sling in perfect condition. Though I have not tested the stains on this sling, I have often done so and am familiar with the appearance of 160 year old blood on cloth. That said, I am confident in my own mind that the stains on the sling are blood.

Remarkably, the box still retains its original cartridge box plate bearing the State Seal of Georgia. In 1860 the state of Georgia purchased one thousand sets of accoutrements from Ames Manufacturing Company. Ames then subcontracted them to Emerson Gaylord who provided a cartridge box and a waist belt with a Georgia oval plate attached. This is an especially important box. Because of its configuration and the original Gaylord plate attached, we can tell that this was issued between the latter part of 1860 and the beginning of the War in the spring of 1861. We can tell this because the Gaylord accoutrement sets could not have been fabricated by Gaylord, and delivered by Ames, prior to the latter half of 1860. This gives us the earliest date, and we can tell the latter date because the white web over the shoulder belt was never issued by the Confederate Government, only individual State Armies.

The seal displays a symbolic image of the Constitution as an arch that is supported by three pillars: "Wisdom, Justice, Moderation". The rights enshrined in the Constitution are symbolically protected in the seal by a guardian standing ready with a drawn sword. Just before the War, Georgia’s leaders cast "moderation” to the wind and the other two pillars collapsed during the War. And thus in 1861 did Georgia’s sons go forth to protect the sacred rights won by their fathers in 1776. Georgia’s citizen soldiers did their utmost to defend their three founding principles, though in the end, all three were crushed.

Confederate boxes still carrying their original plates are extremely rare in any condition, but to find one in this condition with its original web sling is virtually unheard of. This is the best of the best and has visual appeal second to none.

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