Original Items. Only One Set Available. Epaulettes are a type of ornamental shoulder piece or decoration used as insignia of rank by armed forces and other organizations. Flexible metal epaulettes (usually made from brass) are referred to as shoulder scales. Their direct origin lies in the bunches of ribbons worn on the shoulders of military coats at the end of the 17th century, which were partially decorative and partially intended to prevent shoulder belts from slipping. They gradually became more ornate, particularly in France, and the ornate coiled metal design then spread throughout Europe, and began to be an indicator of higher rank, after which officers of many different types of units began to wear them.

As the United States was for the most part directly influenced by Europe, from the beginning they were utilized as part of the uniform of military commissioned officers. As time went on even NCOs were able to use minimalized examples.

This is a lovely set of white epaulets dating to the 1830s, the Seminole Wars era. There is some material loss to their face, and the buttons they would have had are missing. The two hooks are still intact on the backs, and the white fabric coils are very well-retained, but there are areas of material loss.

A very lovely set of 1830s era epaulettes, ready for further research and display.