Items Similar to Patriotic "E Pluribus Unum" Eagle Silk and Metallic Embroidered Needlework
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 9
Patriotic "E Pluribus Unum" Eagle Silk and Metallic Embroidered Needlework
$4,500
£3,428.25
€3,912.45
CA$6,323.56
A$6,891.57
CHF 3,649.39
MX$82,775.05
NOK 46,202.02
SEK 42,478.21
DKK 29,221.64
About the Item
Presented is a patriotic silk and metallic thread trapunto embroidered souvenir, dating to the late 19th century. The banner has a tan silk field, with "E. Pluribus Unum" embroidered in gold thread on a waving banner. The banner unfurls below a glorious spread wing eagle with a U.S. Shield and a panoply of American flags, arrows, and branches. This embroidered banner was most likely made in Japan as a souvenir sold to traveling American merchants and sailors.
Souvenir shops were numerous in popular Japanese ports, advertising directly to the American sailors and merchants and touting souvenirs for family members and loved ones. Kimonos, tablecloths, shawls, paintings, calendars, and Christmas cards could be found alongside these patriotic embroideries. Following the earlier tradition of British and American sailor-made woolies, these later 19th century embroidered souvenirs featured many of the same design woolies motifs, including flags, eagles, boats and anchors, and patriotic mottos.
Embroidery shops in Yokohama, Nagasaki, and Tokyo produced large numbers of these needleworks. They often produced catalogs filled with popular nautical or patriotic designs, with options for sailors’ own customization, like the name of their boat, cities they had visited, and even the option to insert small photographs or portraits. With bold colors, eye-catching metallic sheen, and intricate stitching, these embroidered souvenirs were the most popular during the Great White Fleet tour of 1907-1909, but earlier examples can date to the 1890s. Many of the examples we see today are created by the George Washington Company out of Yokohama, Japan, which operated from the 1890s all the way to 1939.
CONDITION:
In very condition. Tan silk field, expertly embroidered with silk and metallic thread, in red, white, black, blue, gray, green, gold and silver. The eagle is accented with a glass eye. Trapunto embroidery is intact with very minimal pulls, snags, or losses. Wrinkles to silk along edges, very small scattered stains to the tan silk field. Some evidence of silk field threads along the edge indicates the color was originally deeper purple or maroon, since faded to tan. Yet metallic threads remain very bright. Banner is framed in a custom archival wooden frame, with UV glass.
Framed Dimensions: 21 1/2" H x 24" W x 3/4" D.
Accompanied by our company's letter of authenticity.
- Dimensions:Height: 21.5 in (54.61 cm)Width: 24 in (60.96 cm)Depth: 0.75 in (1.91 cm)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:Late 19th Century
- Condition:Additions or alterations made to the original: Banner is framed in a custom archival wooden frame, with UV glass. Wear consistent with age and use. Minor fading.
- Seller Location:Colorado Springs, CO
- Reference Number:Seller: F4871stDibs: LU909747030982
About the Seller
4.9
Gold Seller
Premium sellers maintaining a 4.3+ rating and 24-hour response times
Established in 2010
1stDibs seller since 2011
471 sales on 1stDibs
Typical response time: <1 hour
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Shipping from: Colorado Springs, CO
- Return Policy
More From This Seller
View AllCentennial Celebration "1776-1876" American Flag Banner
Located in Colorado Springs, CO
Presented is a rare Centennial patriotic flag banner, dating to 1876. The flag’s brilliant blue canton is spectacular, with 81 five-pointed, rayed stars, arranged to read “1776” and “1876.” The flag’s design is completed with thirteen alternating red and white stripes. The flag is a three-piece, treadle-sewn sewn construction, printed on a thin wool and cotton blend. Along the edge, there is a narrow, treadle-sewn sleeve made of cotton tape.
In the lead up to the nation’s Centennial in 1876, flag makers and individuals looked to the past for designs to produce as part of the country’s many celebrations. Popular interpretation of the stars and stripes undoubtedly reached its climax of variety and originality at the time of our Nation’s first Centennial. Since no design restrictions were placed on flagmaker’s imaginations and no strict distinctions were drawn between official and unofficial star counts, it is no surprise that, on the occasion of the Centennial, creativity in flag design was not the exception, but the rule.
The cantons from this period presented an array of geometric abstractions. Great star patterns, referred to as the “starry flower of Liberty” by Oliver Wendell Holmes, that were popular from 1818 and on, resurfaced in Centennial flags...
Category
Antique 1870s American Political and Patriotic Memorabilia
Materials
Wool, Cotton
42-Star American Parade Flag, Commemorating Washington Statehood, 1889
Located in Colorado Springs, CO
This is an uncommon 42-star flag, commemorating the addition of the state of Washington to the Union. The flag dates to 1889-1890, and is printed on cotton. The canton consists of s...
Category
Antique 1880s American Political and Patriotic Memorabilia
Materials
Cotton
44-Star Silk American Flag, Celebrating Wyoming Statehood, Circa 1890-1896
Located in Colorado Springs, CO
Presented is a 44-star silk American flag, commemorating Wyoming statehood. The flag dates to 1890-1896. The flag has an “8-7-7-7-7-8” star configuration, with the stars whimsically ...
Category
Antique 1890s American Political and Patriotic Memorabilia
Materials
Silk
31-Star Printed American Flag, Celebrating California Statehood, Circa 1850
Located in Colorado Springs, CO
This is a rare 31-star medallion printed American flag, celebrating the addition of California to the Union. The flag is printed on silk and has a spectacular “Great Star” canton pat...
Category
Antique 1850s American Political and Patriotic Memorabilia
Materials
Silk
36-Star American Printed Parade Flag, Circa 1865-1867
Located in Colorado Springs, CO
This is an antique 36-star American flag, as striking as it is scarce. The flag has a glazed cotton construction, with a blue canton printed with 36 white stars. The stars are arrang...
Category
Antique 1860s American Political and Patriotic Memorabilia
Materials
Cotton
38-Star American Parade Flag, Flown at a Reception for President Grant, 1880
Located in Colorado Springs, CO
This is a beautifully colored 38-star American parade flag, flown at a public reception for Ulysses S. Grant in October of 1880. This printed flag features a rare, triple medallion s...
Category
Antique 1880s American Political and Patriotic Memorabilia
Materials
Cotton
You May Also Like
Oversized 1910 American Naval Silk Embroidered Souvenir Tapestry
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A magnificent early 20th-century U.S. Navy silk embroidered presentation tapestry, created in East Asia around 1910 for American sailors to send home as souvenirs during Pacific crui...
Category
Vintage 1910s Japanese Tapestries
Materials
Silk
Antique Japanese Export Silk Embroidery Panel of American Union
Located in Atlanta, GA
A rather fascinating silk embroidery panel that depicts an American eagle perched on a shield, with laurel branches and shooting arrows under the...
Category
Antique Late 19th Century Japanese Japonisme Textiles
Materials
Silk, Wood
Franco-American Textile with the Image of an Eagle Holding the American and Flag
Located in York County, PA
Franco-American textile with the image of an eagle supporting knotted and draped american and French flags beneath four war planes; embroidered silk floss and metallic bullion thread...
Category
Mid-20th Century American Political and Patriotic Memorabilia
Materials
Silk
Rare 13 Star Civil War Flag in the Trumbull Pattern w/ 36 Stars on the Reverse
Located in York County, PA
EXTRAORDINARY CIVIL WAR ERA FLAG, WITH 13 HAND-SEWN STARS ARRANGED IN A VARIANT OF WHAT IS KNOWN AS THE TRUMBULL PATTERN, FEATURING A HUGE, UPSIDE-DOWN CENTER STAR, AND THE EXTREMELY...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century American Political and Patriotic Memorabilia
Materials
Cotton
Antique Japanese Export Silk Embroidery Americana Patriotic Panel
Located in Buffalo, NY
A silk embroidery panel that depicts an American eagle perched on the liberty shield, with laurel branches and shooting arrows under the feet and flanked by four American flags and b...
Category
Antique Late 19th Century Japanese Japonisme Textiles
Materials
Silk, Wood
Antique Japanese Export Silk Embroidery Americana Patriotic Panel
Located in Atlanta, GA
A silk embroidery panel that depicts an American eagle perched on the liberty shield, with laurel branches and shooting arrows under the feet and flanked by four American flags and b...
Category
Antique Late 19th Century Japanese Japonisme Textiles
Materials
Silk, Wood
