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Property from the Zaricor Flag Collection: The 20th Century
Lot 223

A U.S. 48-STAR INTERMENT FLAG FEATURING GOLD STARS ON THE OBVERSE.
A machine-sewn wool and cotton pieced flag with applique stars, gold on obverse, white on reverse, c.1944, 54 ¼ x 103 inches.

21 November 2023, 10:00 EST
New York

US$1,000 - US$2,000

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A U.S. 48-STAR INTERMENT FLAG FEATURING GOLD STARS ON THE OBVERSE.

A machine-sewn wool and cotton pieced flag with applique stars, gold on obverse, white on reverse, c.1944, 54 ¼ x 103 inches. Condition generally good.
Provenance: Estate of Corporal Carl E. Sheldon (d.1944); acquired by Zaricor Flag Collection prior to 2008.

This unusual flag casket flag featuring gold stars instead of the standard white was issued for the casket of Tech 5 Carl E. Sheldon and presented to his widow Vera Sheldon. In November of 1944, as the number of U.S. casualties rose and the supply of casket flags dwindled, the U.S. Military contracted with a small French or Belgian flag manufacturer to produce interment flags. The European company produced about 500 examples with gold stars instead of the authorized white before the variation was discovered, but because the demand was so great, the gold star versions were authorized by the army and placed into use. The poignancy of a flag with gold stars—the gold star represents a life lost in military service—is not lost on flag collectors.

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