Our buttons for Merchant Marine dress and service uniforms are available in two sizes. The 36-ligne button is for wear on the front panels of Service Dress Blue, White Choker, and White/Black Mess Dress uniform coats and jackets, while the 25-ligne size is used for pockets found only on the White Choker coat.
The fouled anchor embossed on the Merchant Marine buttons has been a part of nautical imagery for centuries, but the exact origin of this particular design featuring a star underneath the left and right sides of the stock has been vigorously debated. According to the Record Of American Uniform And Historical Buttons by Alphaeus H. Albert—universally considered the standard reference for American military and military-related buttons—this design was first used for the buttons on coats worn by cadets at the United States Maritime Service Academy.