Battle of Gettysburg - July 1-3, 1863 .58 Caliber FIRED "3 Ringer" Minié Ball

Of Special Note: This is and authentic Civil War artifact that still has remnants of the dried, chalky clay-like dirt it was found in. It was recovered by relic hunter colleagues in decades past from private land that was part of the Gettysburg battlefield. Along with the archival display shown, you will receive an extensive Certificate of Authenticity & Documentation Package with your treasure.

This bullet saw action during the Battle for Gettysburg of July 1-3, 1863

Forever locked in history, names like Devil's Den, little Round Top, the Wheatfield, the Peach Orchard and Pickett's Charge on Cemetery Hill mark the most costly battle in U.S. history with as many as 51,000 casualties (those killed, wounded, missing or captured).

Four and a half months later, at the dedication of the Soldier's national Cemetery in Gettysburg, President Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address, one of the most influential American speeches ever delivered. The bullet in this display was recovered from private land and saw action in the Battle of Gettysburg.

Your Battle of Gettysburg Ammunition comes ready for display, including:

1. A FIRED .58 caliber Minié Ball
2. A detailed, multi-page Certificate of Authenticity research and written by Robert
3. "Dinna fire till ye can see the whites of their e'en!" Historic Brief
4. An archival 5" X 5" display stand ready for display on your desk or bookshelf.

About the Minié Ball:

This lead projectile still has remnants of the dried, chalky clay-like dirt it was found in. It is a Minié ball (minie ball) and is a type of muzzle-loading, spin-stabilizing rifle bullet named after its co-developer, Claude Etienne Minié. It came to prominence in the Crimean War (1853 to 1856) but Minié-derived weapons became the most common firearm in the American Civil War due to their accuracy.

The bore of this new rifle had grooves (“rifling”) in it which slowly twisted as they went from the back to the front of the weapon. The back of the bullet had a conical base with three rings which expanded when the gun powder was ignited. The base then filled into the barrel’s rifling which gave the projectile a spin, thus making it much more accurate. The adoption of this ammunition allowed soldiers to reload their rifled muskets faster and fire them more accurately. This increased the lethality of weapons used on the battlefield and effectively rendered conventional line infantry tactics obsolete.