An individual multi-relic desk set and inkwell souvenir, ca. late 19th century. Constructed from a combination of battlefield-sourced wood, stone, iron, and lead relics, mounted to a rectangular oak base. Designed and manufactured by J.A. Woodward of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

A spectacular example of a late 19th-century locally-produced Gettysburg veteran souvenir desk set. Crafted during the golden age of battlefield commemoration by renowned maker J.A. Woodward, this desk suite serves as a miniature, three-dimensional museum of the war's most famous clash. Every component of the desk set is fashioned from an authentic, battlefield-harvested relic, complete with its original, highly descriptive paper label affixed to the front edge of the wooden base.

The visual composition is dominated by a vertical, jagged slab of iron shell. The reverse of this central piece features a beautifully executed, period-engraved script reading: From Battle of Gettysburg 1863. Flanking this central monument is a small glass inkwell with a threaded pewter cap on one side, and a hollowed-out, rectangular wooden pen or match holder on the other. Nestled into the top surface of the base are three spent battlefield projectiles: two fired, mushroomed Minié balls (one showcasing a crisp hollow base) and a central iron canister or grapeshot ball.

The primary historical significance is anchored by the surviving text on the fragile paper label wrapper spanning the front of the oak base:

"BASE, OAK WOOD — M[ade from a floorboard] of the Hospital at the College, which was used as a Confederate Hospital [during and aft]er the battle. Granite Rock from Little Round Top. Piece of Bomb Sh[ell. Minie] Bullet from Battlefield. J.A. Woodward, Designer."

This text explicitly maps the provenance of the individual materials to some of the most sacred sectors of the battlefield. The heavy oak base was sourced from the floorboards of the iconic Pennsylvania College (now Gettysburg College) Edifice, which fell behind enemy lines on 1 July 1863, and was immediately converted into a massive, sprawling Confederate hospital overseeing hundreds of amputations. The stone component is explicitly tracked to the rugged slopes of Little Round Top, where the 20th Maine and Vincent's brigade held the Union left flank.

During the late 1880s through the 1913 Fiftieth Anniversary Great Reunion, local craftsmen like J.A. Woodward secured contracts to clear timber or remodel historic structures on the field. Rather than discarding the scrap material, Woodward, a gunsmith by training, masterfully upcycled fragments of bullet-scarred wood and hospital floorboards into high-end, commemorative desk sets sold exclusively to visiting veterans, officers, and early historical tourists. Complete Woodward desk sets retaining their original printed paper labels and "un-messed-with" components are rare, representing the pinnacle of 19th-century American souvenir and relic culture.

[Militaria, Civil War, Battlefield Relics, Gettysburg Relics, J.A. Woodward, Gettysburg College, Pennsylvania College, Little Round Top, Gettysburg Hospital, Inkwell, Desk Set, Veteran Souvenir, Americana] 

Excellent. The desk set exhibits only gently wear. Most of the original paper label, a rarity in any condition, remains in place.