13 Star Confederate States of America Provisional Flag - made while Confederate government still forming.
When the recently seceded states met in Montgomery, Alabama to form a new government one of the tasks that accompanied the building of their new nation was the selection of a national flag. While the Confederate Provisional Congress would complete this task on March 4, 1861, patriots and entrepreneurs alike made provisional flags representing the seceded states before that date.
One common variant of these flags was a U.S. style flag with seven stripes which represented the original seven Southern states which seceded from the Union from December, 1860 to early March, 1861. The cantons usually contained stars representing some number of actual or anticipated Confederate states.
Additionally, this flag's design is striking in its similarity to designs used during the American Revolution period. During this period of early secession, many in the Confederacy believed that the Confederate states closely represented the ideals of the American Revolution and therefore the adaptation of the 13 stars drew upon this assumption.
The catalog description of this flag identified it as a 13 Star U.S. Navy Boat flag, circa 1863. The flag's stars are depicted in a 4-5-4 configuration, and it is made of wool bunting, 32" x 58" inches. The hoist bears the flag maker's name: "H. Korn, Philadelphia"."
This flag has only seven stripes, indicating that this in not a U.S. Navy Boat flag but rather was a flag that was similar in size to a boat flag which was made to represent the nascent Confederate States of America in early 1861. Flags of this type are extremely rare and are usually misidentified when discovered.
Provenance:
• Made by H. Korn of Philadelphia, 1861
• By repute CSA, 1861
• Acquired by Richard H. Keller who sold it to the Crow Art Partnership Collection, 1986.
• Acquired at auction from the Crow Art Partnership Collection, Dallas, Texas, via Heritage Auction Inc., at the 24 June 2007, Civil War Grand Format Auction, in Gettysburg, PA.
ZFC Significant Flag
Sources:
Rejected Proposals for the Confederate Flag, Flags of the Confederacy, 14 November 2011, from:
http://www.confederate-flags.org/bridesmaids.html
Bazelon, Bruce S., William F. McGuinn, A Directory of American Military Goods Dealers & Makers 1785-1915, Manassas, REF Typesetting & Publishing, Inc., 1999.
Martucci, Dave, The Contest for a Confederate National Flag, Flags of the Confederacy, 15 November 2011, from:
http://www.confederate-flags.org/bridesmaid%20flag%20chart.html
Image Credits:
Zaricor Flag Collection
Heritage Auctions
