William McKinley Campaign Pendant Gilt Brass

A William McKinley campaign pendant in gilt brass, 32 mm across and 37 mm overall with the loop. McKinley faces left inside a beaded inner border, WILLIAM McKINLEY below between stars, with a decorative border around the whole. The suspension loop is integral rather than soldered on, so the piece came out of the die ready to hang, either on its own or as the drop from a larger badge. Much of the original gilt is still there across the portrait and the broad fields, with the recesses toned darker and the scratches and contact marks of something that was worn rather than put away. McKinley ran in 1896 and again in 1900, both times against Bryan, and both campaigns turned out political jewelry in quantity. The design does not pin the piece to one of the two. DeWitt's numbering stops with the 1892 campaign, so McKinley material falls outside it entirely and is described rather than numbered.