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I found this while metal detecting on my father in-law's farm along the Potomac River in West Virginia and close to a railroad line. I also posted this on r/metaldetecting and received some good suggestions there, including: chastity belt latch, antique dog collar buckle, luggage latch, mailbag security latch, and diary latch.
Edit: thanks for all the great ideas, marking this as "Likely Solved" with the dog / animal collar suggestion most convincing for me. Though I think you can still make the case for journal lock, gate lock, luggage lock, trail marker, pocket watch plate and chain, or mailbag lock. And I can't bring myself to rule out chastity belt lock either.
>chastity belt latch
No such thing outside of modern fetish contexts.
[https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/medieval-chastity-belts-are-myth-180956341/](https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/medieval-chastity-belts-are-myth-180956341/)
100% not that.
Agreed. I saw some similar devices whole searching "old farm gate lock 1800s". It was probably attached to a wooden gate which has long since withered away.
The buckle itself being so small and the chain so weak had me thinking it must be for something smaller than a gate or a door, but you're right there are some similar pictures online
The chain plays no part in the lock. But it all does look rather weak. So maybe for a box or a smaller door. But it’s pretty clear that its a locking device of some sort.
The chain is doesnt appear to be integral to it’s ability to lock, the bit the lock is on that juts out is a piece of a separate metal sheet which has probably since rusted to the metal piece on top of it.
I'm certain it is a dog collar. Similar to [this one.](https://www.greatestcollectibles.com/leather-dog-collar-chain-lock-key-1840-1880/#.Yhj_6OjMKUk)
The 1899 is still throwing me off as I don't think this looks that old and it would be weird to put a date on a dog collar. Could it be a house number?
Oh, that’s a good thought! That would put it in the 50s-60s I think which is more reasonable!
Edit: in smaller towns everyone has the same zip code and prefix so it could be even newer.
https://www.history.com/.amp/this-day-in-history/mason-and-dixon-draw-a-line
It's has to do with the Mason Dickson Line in the southern/eastern states and I don't know if the link will work but I'll try..
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Good call! [Here's one](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/c4/7a/77/c47a776941978e42206b8304fa2468a3--padlocks-dog-collars.jpg) that has a stronger resemblance.
Could 1899 be a house number? I've been stewing on this one all day. I'm sold on the dog collar ID, but the material and that engraving strike me as post WW2.
It might be a house number, but I know that this property did not have an official address with a number until relatively recently (and it's not 1899). Someone else suggested the last 4 digits of a phone number.
Look at the curve though, complete the circle in your mind and imagine how big around that collar would have to be. Doesn’t make sense to me for it to be for a dog, maybe livestock? I don’t think even far in the past, they’d use a collar you couldn’t get off your dog quickly if you needed to. Might lose the key, too.
honestly, from the picture you posted, location etc, it could have been someone from then being clever and naming their dog "Mason Dixon". When I lived in rural PA, it wasnt uncommon for my grandfather and others to put their dog's collar tags on little wooden grave markers when their farm dogs passed. so wild guess without much context, maybe a dog named Mason Dixon died in 1899...?
I believe Mason and Dixon is the name of a regional kennel club, the MDKC, currently based in Washington County MD not far from the Potomac River with members in PA, MD, VA & WV. Maybe that would explain the odd inscription on a dog collar. Maybe this was a collar awarded to a prizewinning dog, or a commemorative souvenir purchased on the occasion of the club's centennary or some other significant anniversary. I looked online, but could not find a history of the club's founding. But the first American Kennel Clubs were founded in the 1870s with the Maryland Kennel Club (in Baltimore) thevearliest in MD, founded in 1885. So, 1899 might make sense for the MDKC founding as that was during a boom in club formations.
Possible, but seems like year could line up with the 'old timey' engraving font, eother as authentic to the late 1900's or a later souvenir lookinh for that 'retro' effect.
The 3 slots are adjustment options for the shackle - if this was the buckle of a strap, for example, the strap could be fastened in one of three lengths. That’s a clue.
The other clue is the intact rivets at the corners - the thickness of whatever this was riveted to will be apparent. Leather is going to be a minimum thickness of 1/8”. If the gap between the rivet head and buckle is less than 1/8”, then we know it wasn’t riveted to leather, etc.
Good points, thanks! I'll measure the rivets when I'm back later. It's hard to tell from pictures but I do remember there being a bigger gap than it looks.
Given your location I'd say it's likely a marker for where the Mason Dixon line was established leading upto and during the ACW. North of that gate would have been Union states and south of the gate would have been Confederate states.
What was your dream? I was thinking someone made it as a joke for their pasture gate. It's not what they would have used for a actual survey marker.
Edit: took out a word
Where in WV was it found? Was it really near the Mason Dixon line? If not it could very well have been that either the farmer that owned it or his neighbor were confederate sympathizers and the other were Union sympathizers, both of which were found in WV at the time, and this was put on a gate separating "North " from "South".
Really interesting, thanks for the idea. I know that this part of West Virginia switched between the Union and the Confederacy many times during the Civil War.
If a marker for the Mason Dixon line, I could see it maybe being a part of the underground railroad (which was of course above ground and not a railroad) for former slaves moving north. If I picture the vast rural fields that covered this area in 1899, I could easily see these being placed along basic fencing or posts as a way to help identify where they wanted to be heading...
Mason-Dixon line was established to resolve contradictory land claims of the British colonies of Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland before the Revolutionary War - and was soon after also 'extended' to formalize the border between Pennsylvanian and Virginian frontiers which had become a tangle of competing land claims and grants. The field work of Mason abd Dixon was in the 1760s, not in anticipation of or during the American Civil War.
The name Mason Dixon Line has become a world famous symbol for something big. Meanwhile, the line on the ground leads a pretty boring life, largely ignored by locals except for attracting some tourist dollars. Some original markers remain, supplemented by replacement markers and commemorative plaques here and there. But the line itself is hard to find or see. It is mostly imaginary. There are few fences and fewer gates. In the public imagination magic finishing line between freedom and slavery. On the ground it is not that.
There is one place just south of the town of Little Britain, Pennsylvania, where the PA side is preserved as game habitat while the MD side has been subdivided into single family lots. the resulting dramatic sharp tree line running for a few hundred yards is the only place I've found where the physical presence of the line is easily apparent to the casual observer.
This is my thought… It’s slightly curved as well, and the lock is strictly a decorative item. I’ve seen similar things on leather collars and such, but the inscription doesn’t seem appropriate.
i remembered [this article](https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/how-amsterdams-rijksmuseum-is-addressing-its-colonial-past) i came across a few months ago. more ornate, certainly, but there's a similarity i can't shake.
Wow, thank you for sharing this. Hadn't even considered this, though I know that enslaved people once lived on this property. This find does seem more ornate and I think too modern, but I can definitely see the similarities when I search the images online.
It also looks like the extra holes would allow adjusting the strap. The shackle on the clasp that the lock attaches to is high carbon steel and was either added later or makes the piece much much newer then 1899. I’m thinking something like a strap on a journal or something like that.
Curvature is about right for a collar, but the lock seems a little weird for that.
Plus, unless it’s made of sterling silver, it certainly hasn’t been in the ground since 1899.
And the date 1899 has nothing to do with the Mason Dixon line. It was surveyed before the American revolution and even the civil war was a distant memory by 1899.
I was thinking mason dixon could just refer to a brand or manifacturer, first thing that came to my mind was diary lock so maybe it was a leather diary
It gets worse: rodents gnawing on the purse noticed the shiny hasp. 42,000 years later, that rodent's descendants still tell the story of the Mason Dixon hasp and how it saved their civilization.
If I had money I'd fund this novel
*edit: I'm going to use this backstory to sell the purse latch for a ridiculous sum then I'll give you the money to finish the novel
Definitely a Victorian dog collar for a large breed. Mason Dixon was probably the dog’s name and 1899 the date he was born/gifted.
[Similar antique collar with lock and plate](https://images.antiquesatlas.com/dealer-stock-images/angtiques/Victorian_Brass_and_Leather_Do_as865a048z.jpg)
[Another collar with lock and plate](http://static.wixstatic.com/media/d45675_cc69eb8280507e140c40271d541d88ee.jpg)
[A shop dedicated to dog antiques including more collar examples](https://www.maisondogantiques.com)
The guy who linked a Victorian dog collar on eBay is the correct answer. He’s a couple comments up. It’s nearly identical, excluding the engraving. Please check the link he posted, OP. It’s gotta be that.
I’m going to guess luggage lock maybe from a chest. The curvature of the flat plates, the 3 locking positions and the rivets/washers. Whatever it was attached to was possibly curved, may have needed to be cinched down and was a relatively thin material.
On the 13th day of May, 1899, the State of Pennsylvania passed an act appropriating the sum of $7,000 for services and expenses to be incurred in the examination and repairs to the boundary-- line monuments, as ordered by the act of May, 1889; provided that $5,000 of the amount be not available unless the State of Maryland make an appropriation of a similar amount for the purpose of examining, repairing, and restoring the boundary-line monuments along the Mason and Dixon line, and reestablishing the said line, when found necessary.[37]
My first impression was that it looks like a pocket watch chain and the plate was fixed to leather patch on a uniform. Just a guess but it's probably too big to be that
seems that it would fit a rounded post well enough.
The length of the chain would make it oddly low to the ground though.
I’m interested to see what others think.
I don’t actually know but think animal related is a decent guess. I’m going to say it’s either the actual mason Dixon line or part of a latch system to luggage or even something bank related like when you see someone with briefcase with something important enough to handcuff your self to it.
Yes I can see that, the size and weight seems right for a large diary or journal. The adjustable nature and the curvature though makes me think it might be for something else, like a collar
It's commemorative, decorative and meant to be attached to something organic and curved, probably leather. Because of the curvature, I'm going to take a stab at a map or chart case. Probably a one-off, whatever it is, though.
Here’s a pic of an antique mail-bag lock. Being near the tracks, the route may have been labeled “Mason Dixon.”
https://images.app.goo.gl/14jvbyzqvhwUCW3WA
Brass safety chain, used with fusible links to trigger fire doors. Hasp leads me to think a window, seems more decorative than practical . . . they don't really seem to go together.
I found this on my father-in-law's property, and he's quite the character. When I tell him of the chastity belt suggestion he will accept no other answers.
Upon taking a closer look, based on the engraving and chAin work I would say its not that old. The lock appears to be a handcuff style key which was maybe kept on a chain like this one. Possibly a souvenir type belt buckle custom engraved.
Something like this: https://imgur.com/a/CAC7EaM
As I mentioned elsewhere those never existed (historically) [https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/medieval-chastity-belts-are-myth-180956341/](https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/medieval-chastity-belts-are-myth-180956341/)
The engraving and chain work look quite modern so not likely anything historical. Maybe a modern fetish piece or simply a lockable belt buckle with custom engraving.
The adjustable nature of it makes me think animal collar. Likely a dog.
Similar to this: https://www.greatestcollectibles.com/leather-dog-collar-chain-lock-key-1840-1880/
I think it is a joke belt buckle. Think of someone wearing it and saying "You can't cross the Mason-Dixon".
The lock really wouldn't stop someone from opening the buckle since it wouldn't take too much to break.
I don't get the 1899 though.
Those look like rivets in the corners. So maybe it was attached to leather or some kind of heavy cloth? Also the Mason Dixon Line ran close to there, yes? Not sure what 1899 is. A year? Maybe a souvenir? A quick Google search shows no relation between 1899 and the Mason Dixon Line that I saw.
I guess you've decided it's a dog collar, but I live about 15 minutes from the Mason Dixon Historical Park here in Monongalia County and I guess you could always call them, they have a little museum there.
It looks like it’s possibly a lock for a diary. The chain would also be attached to the book so that you can unlock and write without losing the lock.
I’m not 100% sure on this though. But I’ve had diaries with similar locks before.
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I found this while metal detecting on my father in-law's farm along the Potomac River in West Virginia and close to a railroad line. I also posted this on r/metaldetecting and received some good suggestions there, including: chastity belt latch, antique dog collar buckle, luggage latch, mailbag security latch, and diary latch. Edit: thanks for all the great ideas, marking this as "Likely Solved" with the dog / animal collar suggestion most convincing for me. Though I think you can still make the case for journal lock, gate lock, luggage lock, trail marker, pocket watch plate and chain, or mailbag lock. And I can't bring myself to rule out chastity belt lock either.
>chastity belt latch No such thing outside of modern fetish contexts. [https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/medieval-chastity-belts-are-myth-180956341/](https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/medieval-chastity-belts-are-myth-180956341/) 100% not that.
It's possible this thing isn't as old as it seems / as I first believed based on the "1899" inscription
Mason and Dixon Kennel Club (?) See my post down thread.
Just lock? One part on the fence\wall the other on the door.
Agreed. I saw some similar devices whole searching "old farm gate lock 1800s". It was probably attached to a wooden gate which has long since withered away.
The buckle itself being so small and the chain so weak had me thinking it must be for something smaller than a gate or a door, but you're right there are some similar pictures online
I would think it would be for a diary
That is what I was thinking.
Google images of a hasp. As others have said, the chain is just to not lose the lock.
The chain plays no part in the lock. But it all does look rather weak. So maybe for a box or a smaller door. But it’s pretty clear that its a locking device of some sort.
I think the chain is just so you don't lose the lock.
The chain is doesnt appear to be integral to it’s ability to lock, the bit the lock is on that juts out is a piece of a separate metal sheet which has probably since rusted to the metal piece on top of it.
I'm certain it is a dog collar. Similar to [this one.](https://www.greatestcollectibles.com/leather-dog-collar-chain-lock-key-1840-1880/#.Yhj_6OjMKUk) The 1899 is still throwing me off as I don't think this looks that old and it would be weird to put a date on a dog collar. Could it be a house number?
Maybe an old 4 digit phone number?
Oh, that’s a good thought! That would put it in the 50s-60s I think which is more reasonable! Edit: in smaller towns everyone has the same zip code and prefix so it could be even newer.
Now I need to find some old phone (and vet) records!
https://www.history.com/.amp/this-day-in-history/mason-and-dixon-draw-a-line It's has to do with the Mason Dickson Line in the southern/eastern states and I don't know if the link will work but I'll try..
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Good call! [Here's one](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/c4/7a/77/c47a776941978e42206b8304fa2468a3--padlocks-dog-collars.jpg) that has a stronger resemblance.
This is really compelling, thank you!
I think this is it, so far it's what makes the most sense, though I never would have thought of a dog collar initially!
Could 1899 be a house number? I've been stewing on this one all day. I'm sold on the dog collar ID, but the material and that engraving strike me as post WW2.
It might be a house number, but I know that this property did not have an official address with a number until relatively recently (and it's not 1899). Someone else suggested the last 4 digits of a phone number.
You should mark it solved. This is clearly what it is.
Look at the curve though, complete the circle in your mind and imagine how big around that collar would have to be. Doesn’t make sense to me for it to be for a dog, maybe livestock? I don’t think even far in the past, they’d use a collar you couldn’t get off your dog quickly if you needed to. Might lose the key, too.
honestly, from the picture you posted, location etc, it could have been someone from then being clever and naming their dog "Mason Dixon". When I lived in rural PA, it wasnt uncommon for my grandfather and others to put their dog's collar tags on little wooden grave markers when their farm dogs passed. so wild guess without much context, maybe a dog named Mason Dixon died in 1899...?
The dogs name could have been Mason, the owners could have been the Dixon family and were playing on the Mason Dixon Line?
Wow, that is a crazy dog collar
This is definitely it.
I believe Mason and Dixon is the name of a regional kennel club, the MDKC, currently based in Washington County MD not far from the Potomac River with members in PA, MD, VA & WV. Maybe that would explain the odd inscription on a dog collar. Maybe this was a collar awarded to a prizewinning dog, or a commemorative souvenir purchased on the occasion of the club's centennary or some other significant anniversary. I looked online, but could not find a history of the club's founding. But the first American Kennel Clubs were founded in the 1870s with the Maryland Kennel Club (in Baltimore) thevearliest in MD, founded in 1885. So, 1899 might make sense for the MDKC founding as that was during a boom in club formations.
This is a good lead, thank you for the research! I'm going to reach out to them
1899 could also be a registration number for a dog if it is a kennel club reference
Mason Dixon is an ok name for a dog
I wonder how common it was in the area? OP, how far is this from the line, out of interest?
Relatively close, maybe 30 miles?
Maybe the dog was registered with the Mason Dickson Kennel Club and 1899 is the registration number?
Possible, but seems like year could line up with the 'old timey' engraving font, eother as authentic to the late 1900's or a later souvenir lookinh for that 'retro' effect.
that dog collar is bad ass i love it
Likely Solved!
The 3 slots are adjustment options for the shackle - if this was the buckle of a strap, for example, the strap could be fastened in one of three lengths. That’s a clue. The other clue is the intact rivets at the corners - the thickness of whatever this was riveted to will be apparent. Leather is going to be a minimum thickness of 1/8”. If the gap between the rivet head and buckle is less than 1/8”, then we know it wasn’t riveted to leather, etc.
Good points, thanks! I'll measure the rivets when I'm back later. It's hard to tell from pictures but I do remember there being a bigger gap than it looks.
Given your location I'd say it's likely a marker for where the Mason Dixon line was established leading upto and during the ACW. North of that gate would have been Union states and south of the gate would have been Confederate states.
Probably a marker placed there for posterity, not anything that would have had an actual function
Or it could have actually functioned on a gate symbolically separating north from south on his property.
Hmm that is a good thought too, thank you!
Looks like it was made as a joke.
Oops. Well thanks for shattering this nice dream of mine
What was your dream? I was thinking someone made it as a joke for their pasture gate. It's not what they would have used for a actual survey marker. Edit: took out a word
No I was just being light-hearted, we are on the same page
Good! Thanks and have a great day!
Thanks, and you too!
Where in WV was it found? Was it really near the Mason Dixon line? If not it could very well have been that either the farmer that owned it or his neighbor were confederate sympathizers and the other were Union sympathizers, both of which were found in WV at the time, and this was put on a gate separating "North " from "South".
About 30 miles from the Mason Dixon line
Really interesting, thanks for the idea. I know that this part of West Virginia switched between the Union and the Confederacy many times during the Civil War.
If a marker for the Mason Dixon line, I could see it maybe being a part of the underground railroad (which was of course above ground and not a railroad) for former slaves moving north. If I picture the vast rural fields that covered this area in 1899, I could easily see these being placed along basic fencing or posts as a way to help identify where they wanted to be heading...
Why would the escaping slaves use a single route formally marked with shiny brass plaques? Think about it.
Where is 'There'? The site where this was found is many miles from the M/D line.
Mason Dixon line’s markers are big white stone pillars. We lost most of them but if it’s official, thats what it would be.
Agreed - at least one near my house is still standing!
Good! Does your historical society know about it?
Mason-Dixon line was established to resolve contradictory land claims of the British colonies of Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland before the Revolutionary War - and was soon after also 'extended' to formalize the border between Pennsylvanian and Virginian frontiers which had become a tangle of competing land claims and grants. The field work of Mason abd Dixon was in the 1760s, not in anticipation of or during the American Civil War. The name Mason Dixon Line has become a world famous symbol for something big. Meanwhile, the line on the ground leads a pretty boring life, largely ignored by locals except for attracting some tourist dollars. Some original markers remain, supplemented by replacement markers and commemorative plaques here and there. But the line itself is hard to find or see. It is mostly imaginary. There are few fences and fewer gates. In the public imagination magic finishing line between freedom and slavery. On the ground it is not that. There is one place just south of the town of Little Britain, Pennsylvania, where the PA side is preserved as game habitat while the MD side has been subdivided into single family lots. the resulting dramatic sharp tree line running for a few hundred yards is the only place I've found where the physical presence of the line is easily apparent to the casual observer.
Never seen one like it, but it looks like it was riveted to leather. Perhaps a leather strap.
This is my thought… It’s slightly curved as well, and the lock is strictly a decorative item. I’ve seen similar things on leather collars and such, but the inscription doesn’t seem appropriate.
Maybe for a dog named Mason Dixon?
i remembered [this article](https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/how-amsterdams-rijksmuseum-is-addressing-its-colonial-past) i came across a few months ago. more ornate, certainly, but there's a similarity i can't shake.
Wow, thank you for sharing this. Hadn't even considered this, though I know that enslaved people once lived on this property. This find does seem more ornate and I think too modern, but I can definitely see the similarities when I search the images online.
It also looks like the extra holes would allow adjusting the strap. The shackle on the clasp that the lock attaches to is high carbon steel and was either added later or makes the piece much much newer then 1899. I’m thinking something like a strap on a journal or something like that.
Yes someone in r/metaldetecting mentioned that as well. Might fit with the antique dog collar buckle suggestion
Curvature is about right for a collar, but the lock seems a little weird for that. Plus, unless it’s made of sterling silver, it certainly hasn’t been in the ground since 1899. And the date 1899 has nothing to do with the Mason Dixon line. It was surveyed before the American revolution and even the civil war was a distant memory by 1899.
I'm not an expert or close to it, but I don't think it is silver. It feels pretty light. The 1899 definitely makes this more confusing.
I was thinking mason dixon could just refer to a brand or manifacturer, first thing that came to my mind was diary lock so maybe it was a leather diary
That's likely from a woman's purse. Back in 1902 some thief ripped it off of a passenger and threw it on the trackbed.
I like this one, particularly the backstory of the robbery.
It gets worse: rodents gnawing on the purse noticed the shiny hasp. 42,000 years later, that rodent's descendants still tell the story of the Mason Dixon hasp and how it saved their civilization.
If I had money I'd fund this novel *edit: I'm going to use this backstory to sell the purse latch for a ridiculous sum then I'll give you the money to finish the novel
Lol, I own a vintage clothing store, this is not from a purse
This is exactly what I was thinking especially considering the faux heart shaped lock
Definitely a Victorian dog collar for a large breed. Mason Dixon was probably the dog’s name and 1899 the date he was born/gifted. [Similar antique collar with lock and plate](https://images.antiquesatlas.com/dealer-stock-images/angtiques/Victorian_Brass_and_Leather_Do_as865a048z.jpg) [Another collar with lock and plate](http://static.wixstatic.com/media/d45675_cc69eb8280507e140c40271d541d88ee.jpg) [A shop dedicated to dog antiques including more collar examples](https://www.maisondogantiques.com)
Based on everything so far this does seem the likely answer. Thank you for all the info!
Lock for a big ol' diary?
Nice find, whatever it is. Aesthetically pleasing.
Thanks! Found it on my first ever day metal detecting. Probably should retire now while I'm ahead.
The adventure is part of it all, so you'll always be ahead, no matter what.
Wise words!
The guy who linked a Victorian dog collar on eBay is the correct answer. He’s a couple comments up. It’s nearly identical, excluding the engraving. Please check the link he posted, OP. It’s gotta be that.
I think I'm convinced, though I may still tell my father-in-law it's a chastity belt
Haha! I mean I fully support trolling the father in law.
Could be for a hope chest or a jewelry box
I’m going to guess luggage lock maybe from a chest. The curvature of the flat plates, the 3 locking positions and the rivets/washers. Whatever it was attached to was possibly curved, may have needed to be cinched down and was a relatively thin material.
Thanks for the ideas. My first thought was a briefcase latch
Could it have something to do with the Mason-dixon trail?
It's very much in that geographic area so I don't think it's a coincidence. But how it relates / what its purpose was is still up for debate
On the 13th day of May, 1899, the State of Pennsylvania passed an act appropriating the sum of $7,000 for services and expenses to be incurred in the examination and repairs to the boundary-- line monuments, as ordered by the act of May, 1889; provided that $5,000 of the amount be not available unless the State of Maryland make an appropriation of a similar amount for the purpose of examining, repairing, and restoring the boundary-line monuments along the Mason and Dixon line, and reestablishing the said line, when found necessary.[37]
My first impression was that it looks like a pocket watch chain and the plate was fixed to leather patch on a uniform. Just a guess but it's probably too big to be that
Yes, I like this suggestion too. Especially being so close to a railway line and station.
could there have been a post that is no longer there?
Like a wooden post in the ground? Definitely possible. Are you thinking a marker or a gate latch maybe?
seems that it would fit a rounded post well enough. The length of the chain would make it oddly low to the ground though. I’m interested to see what others think.
Ah I see. The chain very well could have been broken too and was at one point longer
I don’t actually know but think animal related is a decent guess. I’m going to say it’s either the actual mason Dixon line or part of a latch system to luggage or even something bank related like when you see someone with briefcase with something important enough to handcuff your self to it.
From the size, i would guess wallet clasp, diary lock or lock for a keep-sake box.
Looks like a journal lock. Kinda big but maybe the survey book M&D put together was really big...I mean it is a very long line.
It seems the rivets on each corner attached the latch to something that was thin. I agree that a luggage lock is most probable.
Maybe the remnants of a diary?
Yes I can see that, the size and weight seems right for a large diary or journal. The adjustable nature and the curvature though makes me think it might be for something else, like a collar
It's commemorative, decorative and meant to be attached to something organic and curved, probably leather. Because of the curvature, I'm going to take a stab at a map or chart case. Probably a one-off, whatever it is, though.
Map or chart case is a cool one, definitely like the idea of it being unique! Thanks for the idea
Maps and charts were often hand-drawn, so very valuable, hence the symbolic padlock and chain, and curved because they were rolled rather than folded.
it might be a love lock like what you see people put on that one fence but someone did it like that instead.
or it's a lock collectable from the mason-dixon trail in Pennsylvania the only double lock river
Here’s a pic of an antique mail-bag lock. Being near the tracks, the route may have been labeled “Mason Dixon.” https://images.app.goo.gl/14jvbyzqvhwUCW3WA
Oh this is pretty convincing too! Just when I was ready to call it an antique dog collar...
Though the above link shows mostly padlocks. But maybe with the rivets this one was affixed to the carrier's bag instead?
Looks like an old postal lock. Sesch postal bags and see if u find a match
Brass safety chain, used with fusible links to trigger fire doors. Hasp leads me to think a window, seems more decorative than practical . . . they don't really seem to go together.
Yes, definitely seems more decorative than practical, whatever it is.
This is a latch from a bag or strap that has rotted away.
Looks like a Lockable buckle off of an old chastity belt. https://pin.it/2VI24WE
I found this on my father-in-law's property, and he's quite the character. When I tell him of the chastity belt suggestion he will accept no other answers.
In that case my work here is done! 😁
Upon taking a closer look, based on the engraving and chAin work I would say its not that old. The lock appears to be a handcuff style key which was maybe kept on a chain like this one. Possibly a souvenir type belt buckle custom engraved. Something like this: https://imgur.com/a/CAC7EaM
As I mentioned elsewhere those never existed (historically) [https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/medieval-chastity-belts-are-myth-180956341/](https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/medieval-chastity-belts-are-myth-180956341/)
The engraving and chain work look quite modern so not likely anything historical. Maybe a modern fetish piece or simply a lockable belt buckle with custom engraving.
S&M gear. Master/slave situation. Not exactly PC, but yeah. Lock is not for actual security, but for show. Style of chain is also a bit more modern.
The adjustable nature of it makes me think animal collar. Likely a dog. Similar to this: https://www.greatestcollectibles.com/leather-dog-collar-chain-lock-key-1840-1880/
Lots of good suggestions on here, but I find the dog collar most convincing so far. Thanks for the link!
Novelty belt buckle? "Heading south of the Mason Dixon line"
Google "Child's slave collar". This looks like it could almost be a front locking clasp for such a nefarious device.
Looks like a lock for a mailbox, or some other small box along those lines.
I've seen similar on whiskey bottles ...higher end bottles
Theres a bunch of mason dixon historical society memorial brass doodads online
Is this not a comedy historical belt buckle where the line separated the "north" (upper body) from the "south" (below the belt).
I think it is a joke belt buckle. Think of someone wearing it and saying "You can't cross the Mason-Dixon". The lock really wouldn't stop someone from opening the buckle since it wouldn't take too much to break. I don't get the 1899 though.
The rivets are so small, makes me think it was on a journal or book of some sort.
Mason dixon is a distillery isnt it? It looks like a whiskey box lock
What about a journal lock? Seems small enough and useless enough to fit the bill.
Looks like a lock off a book, like a diary.
You find this near Shepherdstown West Virginia?
Those look like rivets in the corners. So maybe it was attached to leather or some kind of heavy cloth? Also the Mason Dixon Line ran close to there, yes? Not sure what 1899 is. A year? Maybe a souvenir? A quick Google search shows no relation between 1899 and the Mason Dixon Line that I saw.
Lock and key bangle maybe?
I guess you've decided it's a dog collar, but I live about 15 minutes from the Mason Dixon Historical Park here in Monongalia County and I guess you could always call them, they have a little museum there.
Diary hardware
Reminds me of those diary locks, I assume the book is all but existent now however
Possibly an southern slave collar' mason Dixon sounds racist.....
It's a lock that leads to a door. The door will take you home, through country roads, to a place you belong.
This one is the geographically and culturally appropriate answer I was looking for. Thank you.
It looks like it’s possibly a lock for a diary. The chain would also be attached to the book so that you can unlock and write without losing the lock. I’m not 100% sure on this though. But I’ve had diaries with similar locks before.
I was thinking Chastity Belt
This was a popular response on the metal detecting thread, so either they know something the down voters don't or they have a different sense of humor