Civil War Era PORCELAIN INSULATOR * Slash Top CD# U988 Start Price USD 498.00 Current Price USD 1,500.00 Time Left - Bid Count 16 Buy It Now Price - Reserve Price - Start Time Friday, July 18, 2008 End Time Monday, July 28, 2008 Location America's Great Plains See more about 'Civil War Era PORCELAIN INSULATOR * Slash Top CD# U988' Description ‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗Offering this Civil War Era Porcelain “Slash Top” Insulator!Designated as CD U988. ‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗ ‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗_Among Insulator Enthusiasts & Collectors, this is a highly sought-after object. This rare “Slash Top” porcelain insulator hails from Georgia and was manufactured in the 1850s-60s. This was said to be “used on Confederate Telegraph Lines during the Civil War”. It is a threadless, pintype insulator cataloged as CD U988. The “U” stands for unipart. Porcelain insulators from Era were made in smaller amounts and few have survived through the last 150 years. Quoting from his column, “Porcelain Insulator News” (excerpted from a 1976 issue of Crown Jewels of the Wire Magazine), Jack H. Tod writes: “These insulators have a white glaze, a shiny white but rather blanche as with old porcelain door knobs. The body material is very good quality clay…possibly as good as pure “Kaolin” china clay. The U-988 was made in a two part mold. Although very well made for the purpose intended and considerably better made than “pottery” threadless insulators of that era, there are the expected signs of the crudeness consistent with the handwork involved of pin holes, bases out of round and some that have a slight tip.” He goes on to say that it has “indisputable historical significance.” Wow, eh? The insulator offered here does have all the above attributes, including a slight list or tip to one side, a few, tiny pin holes in the white glaze and the base is slightly out of round. (See photos.) The insulator stands 2-7/8” tall, has a base diameter of 2-1/2” and weighs a bit less than half of a pound. It exhibits a strong mold line through the center from side to side. It is in Excellent Vintage Condition with minor but uniform crazing throughout the whole. There is minor chipping to the very edge of the bottom and, possibly, one tight, short, hairline crack to the edge. A Tangible Bit of Civil War History!There is No Reserve! Winning Bidder will pay actual shipping with insurance costs. We are not responsible for loss or damage during transit (although we will pack with care). We ship by USPS Priority Mail. Make Payment by Money Order (ships immediately) or by Personal Check (ships on bank clearance). Sorry, We do NOT accept PayPal. Place a Bid!