1889 Washington Association of New Jersey Badge. By Tiffany & Co. Musante GW-Unlisted, Baker-Y100. Silver. Very Fine.

Approximately 28.4 mm x 31.4 mm. Deeply toned gray silver with soft blue-green accents. The suspension pale blue and gold ribbon is frayed, and the pin bar is no longer attached, but the medals themselves are in fairly nice condition. The pin bar bears the Tiffany mark on the back. This appears to be unlisted by Musante and the Rulau-Fuld reference gives no information on it. These are apparently quite rare. A seemingly well-informed cataloger of one found online, the seller identified as "captured finds LLC" indicated this was produced in 1889, and described it, in part, as follows: "In 1889, the Executive Committee were requested to devise a suitable badge for the Association, and adopted one which met with universal approval. The pin has in the center the crest of the State of New Jersey, with the initial letters of the Association on either side. The ribbon is the 'Jersey blue,' which was derived from the uniform of a body of Jersey troops during the Revolution -- a blue coat with buckskin breeches -- and both colors are embodied in the ribbon; the center being the blue, and the borders Continental buff or buckskin. The medal is an ellipse, resting on an irregular square; on the obverse, the ellipse has a profile bust of Washington (after Houdon), surrounded by the title of the Association; on the square and partially covered by the ellipse is a laurel branch. On the reverse the ellipse bears an impression of the Headquarters, the trees being denuded of leaves; in the upper part of the square is the word 'Morristown,' and in the lower corners the dates '1779' and '1780.' It can be read 'The Morristown Headquarters in the winter of 1779 and 1780.' The design was the work of Mr. J. H. Whitehouse, the celebrated designer for Tiffany & Co., and the dies were cut by that firm under his personal supervision."

Estimate: $ 200