Hi Jose, I would guess that the butt plate would have been a small piece of either silver or brass. It would have been fit over the round end of the tang and would have rested against the shoulder were it has been filed from square to round. The cross pattern on the very end of the tang would have been made by a small chisel and was meant to expand the end of the tang to secure the plate. By looking at the photos I would guess the the plate might have been kind of egg shaped with the whole drilled toward the center of the wider end. I do not believe that any nails were ever used to help hold the plate in place, but that it was held in place only by the expansion of the metal caused by the cross pattern being stamped into the end. I would also think that to make the plate more decorative it would have been incised with line patterns to match the ones carved into the horn around it. JMHO.
Best,
Robert
|