August 18 & 19, 2020 Edged Weapons, Armor, & Militaria
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 8/18/2020
Like pieces of the True Cross, relics of Confederate leaders, from buttons to pieces of cloth, were venerated throughout the south as mementos of the "lost cause." Nothing was more eagerly sought after or more reverently preserved than pieces associated with Robert E. Lee. This is a wonderful, little display mounted with silk ribbon showing the statue of Lee mounted on his horse, Traveler, with a crossed Confederate battle flag the Virginia state flag overhead. The graphics are in color and the silk is white. The ribbon probably comes from the 1890 dedication of the Lee Monument in Richmond. Mounted under the ribbon is a small piece of leather (roughly 3/8" square,) itself mounted on an old card 2-1/4" by 3-1/8" with a great brown ink inscription: "Piece of leather from the / saddle of General Lee / It has been through / the civil war. / From Mt. St. Mary's College / Md." This, of course, refers to what is now known as Mount Saint Mary's University in Emmitsburg, Maryland, and the relic was likely the gift of an alumna with southern sentiments. This comes from the estate of a prominent Maryland collector with long-time connections to the Civil War collecting community and represents a seldom-offered chance to acquire a real Lee relic. SR
Item Dimensions: 2 - 1/4" x 3 - 1/8".