47105
W. Britain
During the War of 1812 American military drums had shells of white oak, varnished with the “best coral varnish,” their hoops painted with “best vermillion.” On the center front they were decorated with an “eagle painted in the best manner on a blue ground with thirteen stars and thirteen stripes, the ground to extend 22 inches around the shell.” By European standards these drums were obsolete as by the 1790s drums with brass shells came into wide use (although some British Regiments were known to still be using wooden shelled drums in Canada). Drums of both types of construction had calfskin heads and were tensioned with ropes and leather tabs that could be adjusted all around the drum shell from the upper to lower hoops that held the heads in place. As an artillery drummer, the trim on his all red coatee collar is yellow worsted tape and the buttons are of brass struck with a device identifying his regiment.