Captains of staff could perform a number of duties. Some could often be found on the staffs of brigadier generals and higher officers in the field, not only carrying out administrative duties, but carrying essential orders under fire to units on the front lines without the satisfaction of being able to fire back. This is a set of regulation shoulder straps showing the black ground of one of these officers, with bullion borders and the double bars of a captain.

The fabric has good color and no moth damage. The bullion strands retain their gilt and show just a few minor gaps from sliding one way or the other from the straps bending. The jacqueron edging wire just about all there. One strap is missing an interior strand and the other is the missing top and bottom strands along the outer edge, but this is not terribly noticeable. Sections of those in place could be tacked down again with a stitch or two. The reverse shows the usual web underlay on which the embroidery was done and the base fabric has been trimmed to the edges of the straps, but this did not usually extend completely across the back of the straps in any case.

This is a good, representative pair of Civil War officer’s straps showing some use and wear. The officer entitled to them could have been in a number of support services or played a very important part in the command and control exercised by a general officer in the field. This set would look great in an officer’s display or help fill out a collection of regulation Civil War embroidered insignia, which is a collecting category of its own.  [sr]

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