American Civil War era lead bullet, the exact type of bullet cannot be determined due to physical damage (likely caused by firing), but based on the characteristics of the areas of the base and bottom that have remained mostly intact it can be inferred that it was some variety of a Sharps carbine. The entire front of the bullet has been smashed down onto the base and flattened, the resulting shape is squat and mushroom like with the edges of the flattened top folding inward towards the "stem" of the base; some parts of the base, namely the bottommost grooved ring and the very bottom of the bullet, remain almost completely intact, the ring is wider and slightly deeper than that of the standard Minié ball, which helps to narrow down the possible types of bullet, along with the bottom being completely filled in other than a single, small hole in the center, a characteristic almost exclusively found in Sharps bullets. Besides the deformation damage, there is significant pitting present on the top of the bullet, also present is a white patina (lead carbonate) that is beginning to form in a few areas on the bullet, most notably on the underside of the smashed top, and on the pits that have been formed on the top, this patina is a normal sign of age in lead objects and is most often caused by long-term exposure to carbon dioxide.