Austria, Empire. An Officer's Shako Plume, c.1910

Plume in a bright white horsehair wrapped around a stiff white core that is wrapped in white feathers, the horsehair very smooth and fine to the touch, with a white synthetic ring affixed by a thin twisted wire support that emerges from underneath a three level feathered skirt at the base, the feathers in red, white and blue, the feathered skirt butting a large knot composed of twenty-four rows of rolled gold-coloured bullion wire wrapped around a stiff yellow embroidered core, the base finished with a magnetic metal wire that is finished in a loop for insertion into the shako, measuring 315 mm in length, not including the 70 mm long insertion loop wire, extremely fine. Accompanied by its black paper wrapped cardboard tube with removable caps at both ends, with one of the caps exhibiting a faded stamp in red ink, measuring 400 mm in length x 47 in diameter, with cracking and wear present, the tube fine.