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  38 CANTED HAND-SEWN STARS AND HAND-SEWN STRIPES ON A FLAG IN A DESIRABLE SMALL SCALE FOR THE PERIOD, 1876-1889, COLORADO STATEHOOD

Available: Sold
Frame Size (H x L): 56" x 88"
Flag Size (H x L): 44.75" x 76"
Description....:
38 CANTED HAND-SEWN STARS AND HAND-SEWN STRIPES ON A FLAG IN A DESIRABLE SMALL SCALE FOR THE PERIOD, 1876-1889, COLORADO STATEHOOD:

38 star American national flag with hand-sewn stars and stripes, in a desirable small size for the period (1876-1889). The stars are arranged in a rectilinear fashion in counts of 7-6-6-6-6-7. This results in a secondary pattern that I commonly call a "box-in-a-box-in-a-box", because of the way in which it creates three consecutive squares. Note how the stars are uniformly tilted in the 11:00 position, which is both interesting and somewhat unusual. There was no official star pattern for the American flag until 1912, so before that time both the arrangement of the stars and their position was up to the flag-maker.

The 38th state, Colorado, received its statehood on August 1st, 1876. This was the year of our nation's 100-year anniversary of independence. Although 37 was the official star count for the American flag in 1876, flag-making was a competitive venture, and no one wanted to be making 37 star flags when others were making 38's. It is for this reason that 38 and 13 stars (to represent the original 13 colonies) are the two star counts most often seen at the Centennial International Exposition, the six-month long, World's Fair, held in Philadelphia in honor of the event. The 38 star flag became official in 1877 and was generally used until the addition of the Dakotas in 1889.

Despite the fact that this might seem to be a large flag by modern standards, it is small in scale among those made for extended outdoor use prior to 1890. During the 19th century, flags with pieced and sewn construction (as opposed to printed) were typically eight feet long or larger. This is because they were important in their function as signals, meaning that they needed to be seen and recognized from a great distance. Even flags made for decorative purpose were generally very large by today's standards. A small flag was six feet in length. This example measured just a bit longer than that originally, perhaps six-and-a-half or seven feet, but was shortened slightly during its regular course of use. Production of flags smaller than this with sewn construction was extremely minimal. Military flank-markers and camp colors are an exception, but surviving examples of these forms are rare. Since the average 19th century sewn flag can be cumbersome to frame and display in an indoor setting, many collectors prefer printed parade flags and smaller sewn flags, like this one.

The stars are made of cotton, hand-sewn and double-appliqued. This means that they were applied both sides of the blue canton. The stripes and canton of the flag are made of wool bunting that has been joined by hand-stitching. The canton is constructed from two lengths of blue fabric, because wool bunting was only available in a maximum width of eighteen inches.

There is a twill cotton hoist binding with 5 hand-sewn, whip-stitched grommets. Lengths of early cotton twine are present in 4 of the 5 grommets and would have been used to affix the flag to a staff. The hoist binding was affixed to the body of the flag with treadle stitching. The fly end was turned back to repair losses from wind shear and this was rebound with a treadle machine. The name "Wind" is penciled along the hoist in two places. This would probably indicate the name of a former owner. It was common to mark flags in this fashion during the 19th century. Other letters or numeric characters are present, but these are largely illegible.

Mounting: The flag was stitched to 100% silk organza on every seam and throughout the star field for support. It was then sewn to a background of 100% cotton twill, black in color, which was washed to remove excess dye. An acid-free agent was added to the wash to further set the dye and the fabric was heat-treated for the same purpose. The mount was then placed in a black-painted, hand-gilded and distressed Italian molding. The glazing is U.V. protective acrylic.

Condition: There is minor mothing in the stripe field but none in the canton. There is very minor age toning. The fly end was turned back during the flag's regular course of use as a ordinary and proper means to mend losses from wind shear. The colors are strong and vibrant. Many of my clients prefer early flags to show their age and history of use.
Collector Level: Intermediate-Level Collectors and Special Gifts
Flag Type: Sewn flag
Star Count: 38
Earliest Date of Origin: 1876
Latest Date of Origin: 1889
State/Affiliation: Colorado
War Association: 1866-1890 Indian Wars
Price: SOLD
 

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