A
pin-back button or
pinback button,
pin button,
button badge or simply
pin-back or
badge, is a
button or
badge that can be temporarily
fastened to the surface of a
garment using a
safety pin, or a
pin formed from
wire, a
clutch or other
mechanism. This fastening mechanism is anchored to the back side of a button-shaped metal disk, either flat or concave, which leaves an area on the front of the button to carry an image or printed message. The word is commonly associated with a
campaign button used in the United States and abroad during a
political campaign. The first design for a pin-back button in the United States was patented in 1896, and contemporary buttons have many of the same design features.