US Dogtags

[Feuerbach]

Hi there. I have another question that has been bugging me for years.
Why do US dogtags have a little notch missing? Hope you know what I mean, they are not completly oval shapped, there is a small piece missing.
Did that have a purpose?

[mr.dirt]

I was always told that 1 of the 2 tags was placed between the upper incisors of the deceased and the notch made it easier to accomplish this task. This aided in the ID of the individual if the remains during recovery and reburial or during futher processing by the Graves Registration Unit.

[gooseandspoons]

it was actualy used to hold it still during printing medical papers, it's all here in the wiki fileDog tag (military) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Feuerbach]

Thank you for this information. Been asking myself this question for years!