It's a pendant or fob now, but what was it then?

It's a triangular bit of metal with what looks like a piece of engraving plate engraving still on it. ...but what was the engraving? It looks like a bit of something technical and the pendant strikes me as something a steampunk would love, but what was it cut down from?

 

What is the size? It looks like an acid etched guitar pick.

 

It's a bit over an inch long and it's solid copper. I don't know that I'd try playing with it although you probably could.

 

Betcha'd shur git sum mital twangin' if'n yer diy'd!!!!!

 

Google "etched metal guitar pick" there are hundreds of examples.

 

Close but not quite. It could just be homebrew, but I'm still trying to figure out the original image.

 

The hole would be pretty odd for a guitar-pick....not impossible, but odd. And I'd expect tapered edges on a pick.....though I know you can get some pretty interesting sounds by strumming a guitar with a US quarter. And copper would be pretty soft for a pick....
And I'm not sure it was cut down, maybe just made that way. Zipper pull? I can think of lots of uses for things like this; tags for stuff, wear it as jewelry....
A lot of the ones at this search result seem to have been intended mostly as jewelry rather than for actually playing a guitar.
https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=etched+metal+guitar+pick+copper&FORM=HDRSC2

 

That's what I saw too; the ones meant to be worn had the holes at the other end. I've seen bits like this made for electric guitars, but it's awfully thick for a pick. Duane Allman used to use one of those 60s Coricidin (sp) bottles on his as a glass slide, so you never can tell, but the hole would make it less durable.

 

It's a steampunk espresso machine.

 

@evelyb30, I 'played' with the image a little and inversed it.....if you look carefully at the inversion......I think it was some sort of coat of arms.....faintly in the "head" you can see like a plume of feathers and to the right sort of like the either face of a helmet or a beak.....I also took out the most distracting white spots so we could focus on the image better....I'm not sure the daggers or swords are identical. And there appears to be a pattern on the top part of the 'shield'. Maybe I should clarify what I'M seeing if you don't.........??? I'm wondering just how OLD that could be!!!! Would a little baking soda and a toothbrush get rid of some of that green???? Or would that be a No-No??

 

I have no idea; that's why it's a puzzlement. I'm not seeing the coat of arms or feathers, just the robot-ty thing.

 

@evelyb30, see if this helps.....if not, then don't give it another thought......that's just what I was pretty sure I could see......try comparing the two, that's all.

 

looks like a boiler with release valves on both sides...

 

I doubt this is what it is, but the shape looks like a binnacle...

 

A boiler sounds more like it, or close enough.

 

I see those too.

 

The piece depicts an alien from outer space in his space suit with tanks of compressed gases from his home atmosphere. The aliens brought these as peace tokens when they first landed near Area 51. They gave a lot away and you can find them occasionally.

 

HAHAHA!! Smartass!!