This example of artillery shell is classified as a Confederate 3”, smooth, long Read percussion shell made for a ten-pound Parrott Rifle (2.9”caliber).  Recovered by David Plank in Gettysburg within days or weeks of the battle, this fired projectile was found in the Reynold’s Woods area of the battlefield. The cylindrical shell is complete with its copper CS variant time fuse adapter in very good condition with a slight nick and one spanner hole chipped open.  Iron body exterior is clean and smooth and exhibits a ‘mid-sleeved’ look, sometimes referred to as a large bourrelete band. Never cleaned, the round wears a dark brown patina overall. The nose area is just a bit tooled down from the rest of the body. Lathe dog still intact as is the standard base dimple. Early design of this type Read was poor and when fired, it was prone to have its sabot top expand into the shell and ‘chip off’ large chunks of shell base as visible on this specimen.  A small section (1¾”) of the brass sabot remains secured at the base. No flame grooves visible on the bottom band. Length: 9”; diameter: 2.95”, weight 4 pounds. This CS Read shell from Reynolds' Woods is identified in John Geiselman’s collection by his contemporary inscribed labels.

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The Horse Soldier is pleased to offer a number of items from the John P. Geiselman collection, a collection that was on display for many years at the Geiselman Country Store Museum on Barlow - Two Taverns Road. Geiselman began his collecting as a child in the early 1920s, and during the pre-World II period had access to artifacts that had been purchased earlier at the estate sales of the Trostle, Rogers, Rose, Weikert, and Wentz farms - local properties that figured prominently in the battle and its aftermath. During this period he had access as well to the Hill , Plank, and Stewart collections, and was able to acquire other items that had been sold from turn-of-the-century relics establishments such as the Danner, Ziegler, and Oak Ridge Museums. Furthermore, Geiselman carefully documented most artifacts, and collectors perusing the list will be able to note, in many instances, not only the source of the relic and the date of its recovery, but also the part of the battlefield from which it came. In other words, his collection is the last major grouping of Gettysburg artifacts assembled and documented by a local resident.

This item is on sale for 10% off of the listed price.