This
beautiful American Flag most likely dates to the period
between, or inclusive of, the Mexican War (1845-1848) to
the Civil War (1861). The flag is constructed of wool
bunting and hand-sewn cotton stars. The beautiful mellow
color of the white stripes, bold maroon-red color of the
red stripes, and dark blue denim color of the blue
canton combine, along with the exceptionally rare oval
pattern and three central stars, to form one of the
rarest and most visually striking early
American Flags.
There are hundreds
of small, expertly done darned holes in the wool of the
red and white stripes, demonstrating the loving care
taken by previous owners of this flag. The sleeve
is correct for the period and another indication
that in all likelihood the flag is pre-Civil War.
In fact, nothing in the construction of this flag, as
far as I am aware of, would preclude it from being even
older, to include possibly being an exceedingly rare
18th century flag. A
length of the topmost red stripe appears to have been
taken as a souvenir, as was sometimes done to early flags to give as a memento of heroism or the
loss of a military officer, indicating a possible
military usage or association with this particular
flag. Overall, this is without a doubt one of the
finest and rarest American flags in the
collection.
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