39-Star Patriotic Silk Flag, circa 1876-1888

This is a 39-star unofficial American flag, handmade and printed on cotton. The flag dates to 1889 and has a unique history, thanks to its rare star-count. The flag’s canton is prin...

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...

This is a 39-star unofficial American flag, celebrating North Dakota statehood. The printed flag dates to 1889 and showcases a “whimsical” star pattern in the canton. The flag's cant...

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...

13 STARS IN AN UNUSUAL PATTERN ON A RARE PAPER PARADE FLAG WITH ADVERTISING HOP BITTERS, PROBABLY DISTRIBUTED FOR THE 1876 CENTENNIAL; EXHIBITED AT THE MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUT...

39 STARS IN TWO SIZES, ALTERNATING FROM ONE COLUMN TO THE NEXT, ON AN ANTIQUE AMERICAN PARADE FLAG WITH AN UNUSUALLY ELONGATED PROFILE, DATING TO THE 1876 CENTENNIAL, NEVER AN OFFICI...

13 STAR ANTIQUE AMERICAN FLAG WITH HAND-SEWN STARS IN AN EXTREMELY NARROW PRESENTATION OF A 3-2-3-2-3 ARRANGEMENT ON A CANTON THAT DOESN’T FOLLOW SUIT, LEAVING WIDE EXPANSES OF BLUE ...

19th Century American 39 Star Flag, circa 1889, a period printed silk parade flag with a wavy pattern of dancing stars. This was never an official flag of the United States but was m...