Philadelphia Antiques & Art Show 2017

at Saratoga, New York (October, 1777), and one of two versions of The Surrender of Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown, Virginia (October 1781). None of these views were sketched or painted in first person, so it is uncertain whether the star designs of the American flags in these particular paintings were accurate for that particular engagement. Trumbull was, however, as previously indicated, known for his attention to detail. In Standards and Colors of the American Revolution , Richardson describes Trumbull as “meticulous to the accuracy of uniforms and accoutrements … therefore, the flags depicted in [his] paintings should be considered as accurate versions of the time” (fig. 5). In addition to it not having been regularly carried by the Army, private individuals probably didn’t display the flag with any sort of regularity. We know that it appeared on floats during the 1788 Federal Procession, held on July 4th of that year in Philadelphia to celebrate the newly ratified U.S. Constitution, but observers are not reported to have been waving it and this concept didn’t become common in American culture until the Civil War. Because flags used to identify ships and garrisons were generally huge in scale, the larger the flag the less likely it was to have survived. So very few of this era can be expected to turn up in modern times. While there are almost no period examples, hundreds of early 13 star flags exist. They simply don’t date to the 18th century. In fact, many people are surprised to learn that 13 is one of the most common star counts on Stars & Stripes flags that survive from the 19th century. These were produced for a whole host of patriotic as well as practical reasons. One of the more prominent early uses of 13 star flags, post- Revolutionary War, occurred in 1825-1826, when General Lafayette returned to the U.S. from France for America’s 50th birthday celebration. Flags with 13 stars were flown in celebration of the nation’s centennial in 1876, and the sesquicentennial in 1926. They were displayed during the Civil War to reference past struggles for American liberty, W 116 W (Figure 6) 13 Stars in a rare tombstone pattern, on an entirely hand-sewn flag with an embroidered date of July 4th, 1865. Photo courtesy Jeff R. Bridgman Antiques, Inc.