RARE 1st PATTERN MILLS BELT WITH 1880 BELT PLATE

One of the rarest of army accoutrements of the Indian Wars era, is this first contract Mills cartridge belt with 50 loops that hold .45 caliber cartridges for the Springfield 1873 Rifle or Carbine. The earliest Mills web belt can be identified by the use of 4 eyelets at each end of the belt. The other rarity here is the 1880 two piece U.S. ìHî buckle. This pattern buckle has a flat surface, with a sunken oval with the protruding US in the oval. For simplicity sake, I will simply call the color for what it is now, a dark tan color. Some references color the original color a stone or gray color, turned to this color, but the condition suggests that even in the protected areas, the color remains the same, thus probably not too far from the issue color. The condition is very good and shows only minimal wear, mostly some fraying on the loops, some fading of color. The buckle compared to what is found is exceptional. The plate and belt are probably one of the hardest belts to find in this period, and anything in condition is even harder to find.