Vintage Fante People Asafo Flag in Cotton Applique Patterns, Ghana, 1930-1950s

ABOUT Contact us for more shipping quotes: S16 Home San Francisco. An original Asafo flag depicting the Fante people of Ghana, Africa and the Union Jack of the United Kingdom. Mou...

A large and graphically stunning Fante asafo flag. Fante flags represent the merger of two cultural traditions, the Akan tradition of combining pro...

A large and graphically stunning asafo flag. Fante flags represent the merger of two cultural traditions, the Akan tradition of combining proverbs with ...

VINTAGE FLAG OF THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS, THAT BECAME THE TEXAS STATE FLAG, MADE BY DECORATORS, INC. OF BRAZIL, INDIANA, [LATER KNOWN AS THE “OLD GLORY DECORATING COMPANY”], MOST LIKELY...

Unique carved cane that chronicles the life and achievements of Thomas Jefferson. Among the carved words are "Thos. Jefferson of Va Born Apr 2,1743 Wa...

Vintage Italian flag. Vintage Italian flag made by Serpone & Co. Napoli. Italy, Mid-20th Century. Approximate dimensions: 38” H X 60” W

38 STAR AMERICAN PARADE FLAG WITH A RARE AND BEAUTIFUL VARIATION OF THE “GREAT STAR” OR “GREAT FLOWER” PATTERN, 4 LARGE CORNER STARS, & AN ODD OUTLIER, 1876-1889, COLORADO STATEHOOD,...

An original 100% cotton bunting Hungarian flag with metal grommets, made by Bulldog in Verona, New Jersey. Heavy woven fabric with bold color. Measures exactly 32.25" high x 58" wid...

Rare original vintage South Korean / Korean War era flag, circa 1950's. White cotton with screen printed design. Dimensions: 48" x 34" (Length x Width)

38 STAR ANTIQUE AMERICAN FLAG WITH A DOUBLE-WREATH CONFIGURATION THAT FEATURES AN ENORMOUS CENTER STAR, REFLECTS THE PERIOD OF COLORADO STATEHOOD, 1876-1889: 38 star American national flag, made entirely of plain weave cotton. The stars are arranged in a medallion configuration. This features an enormous center star, surrounded by two wreaths of much smaller stars, with a flanking star in each corner of the blue canton. The sort of disparity here, present in the scale of the large star, versus those around it, is both exceptionally unusual and graphically dynamic. Colorado became the 38th state on August 1st, 1876. This was the year of our nation’s centennial. Per the Third Flag Act of 1818, stars were not officially added until the 4th of July following a state's addition. For this reason, 37 remained the official star count for the American flag until part way through the following year. Flag-making was a competitive venture, however, and few flag-makers would have continued to produce 37 star flags when their competitors were making 38’s. Many flag-makers added a 38th star before Colorado entered the Union, in the early part of 1876, or possibly even prior. In fact, many makers of printed flags, called parade flags or hand-wavers, were actually producing flags in the 39 star count, in hopeful anticipation of the addition of two more Western Territories instead of one. It is for these reasons that 38, 39, and 13 stars, to representing the original 13 colonies, are most often seen on flags displayed at the Centennial International Exhibition. Hosted in Philadelphia, this enormous event was our nation’s first World’s Fair, lasted for a duration of six months, and served as the nucleus of celebrations held to honor America’s 100-year anniversary of independence. The 38 star flag became official on July 4th, 1877 and was generally used until the 39th state was added in November of 1889. This is probably a homemade flag, though sewn by a very skilled hand, or possibly, by two different individuals. The stripes are pieced and sewn entirely by hand, with remarkable care and precision. The canton is constructed of two lengths of blue fabric, that have been joined with treadle stitching. This was joined to the striped field by hand. The stars are double-appliquéd (applied to both sides) with treadle stitching. There is a treadle-sewn, cotton binding along the hoist, with five, hand-sewn grommets. It is extremely unusual to encounter this combination of sewing methods. Soon after the sewing machine was mass-marketed, in the mid-1850’s, flag-makers both public and private made good use of treadle machines, to join stripes, when constructing American flags. During the Civil War (1861-65), most stripes were treadle-sewn. Stars were another matter. Until the advent of electric machines...