PROMOTIONAL PIN

1893

1992.46.01

Americans viewed the World's Columbian Exposition - held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World - as an opportunity to assert the country's increasing prominence on the world stage. Likewise, each of the nation's forty-four states vied to surpass the others in terms of the grandeur of its contributions to the fair. Among Montana's many offerings was a solid gold nail, used for the ceremonial completion of the Women's Building. Subsequently, the gold nail was removed and incorporated into a brooch made of precious Montana metals by Butte jeweler J. H. Leyson and given to Bertha Palmer, a Chicago socialite and President of the Exposition's Women's Department. This "Montana Nail" is one of a small number of copies of the pin given to associates of the Women's Building. It is made of stamped brass, with a nail overlaid in rose gold, and adorned with a lone rhinestone.