_USNM 60454 (S-K 210). Figure 69._
[Illustration: FIGURE 69]
This specimen is offered as another possibility for the 1821
regulation plate. It is identical in size and similar in design to the
preceding plate. The plate proper contains an eagle with wings spread,
a breast shield containing the letter "I," an olive branch in right
talon, and three arrows in left talon. There is no outer ring of
stars. The outer ring of the buckle is decorated with a wreath, but
the rectangular belt attachments are plain. The 1821 regulations
called for eagle buttons of "yellow" and "white" metal with the
letters "A" and "I" (for artillery and infantry) on the eagle's
shield, and the belt plate may have been designed to conform. There is
also the possibility that this plate, as well as the one described
below, was designed to conform to the 1835 regulations which
prescribed a waist belt with a "round" clasp.[91]
[Footnote 91: _General Regulations for the Army of the United States_,
p. 222.]