China - Copper Electrolysis Plant Red Guard

A surprisingly rare Red Guard armband dating from China's Cultural Revolution.
This is a cotton Red Guard's armband which has been framed with a companion flag which bears both a stylized portrait of Mao Zedong and a Chinese inscription. The Red Guards were paramilitary units of radical university and high-school students formed during the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution or Cultural Revolution. The Cultural Revolution, from 1966 to 1976, was a response to Mao Zedong's call to revitalize the revolutionary spirit of the Chinese Communist Party, and by extension China itself.

During this era the Red Guards made placards, banners and flags and began wearing red armbands, scarves and pins and carrying the infamous Little Red Book. As evidenced by the flag, the students also evolved a cult of Mao, and his image often graced these items.

While red flags became ubiquitous throughout China during the Cultural Revolution; inscribed paramilitary Red Guard flags bearing Mao's image are less common. This flag is dated to 1968, when the Red Guards undertook a massive campaign aimed at promoting the already-adored Mao Zedong to god-like status; wherein Mao's thought became the operative guide to all things in China. The power of the Red Guards eventually surpassed that of the army, local police authorities, and the law in general. China's traditional arts and ideas were ignored, with praise for Mao being practiced instead. The movement, however, was not confined nor directed by a central organization, and many rival Red Guard groups were formed.

The year 1968 was also the commencement of the 'Down to the Countryside' program when Mao ordered the Red Guards into mountainous areas or farming villages; ostensibly so that they could learn from the workers and farmers; but, in reality to quell unrest and to remove the embarrassment of the early Cultural Revolution from sight because of their disruption of industrial production and urban life. Eventually both the Red Guards and the Cultural Revolution would dissipate.

The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution was actually a struggle for power within the Communist Party of China (CPC) that manifested into wide-scale social, political, and economic chaos, which grew to push large sections of Chinese society and eventually the PRC itself to the brink of civil war. Since it permeated every aspect of the culture, China was literally awash in millions of posters, wall hangings, Mao statues, ceramics, pins and Little Red Books. However, both flags and armbands from this period are less common, and few seem to have reached the west thus increasing the rarity of armbands like this one. This is a companion piece to ZFC0753, a Red Guards Flag.

Chinese inscription, "Proletarian revolutionary rebels' great unified

Command center

City of Tianjin Copper Electrolysis Plant, Number __."

Exhibition History:

University of California - Santa Cruz
Board of Councilors Meeting, Rare Flags Exhibit
Santa Cruz, CA
7 June 2012

ZFC Significant Flag
Item is Framed

Provenance:
• Peoples Liberation Army Unit 8706, Beijing, China, 1968.
• Acquired by Xi Jim Wu, Artesia, CA.
• Purchased via Internet Auction by Carl Zaricor for Zaricor Flag Collection, 2004.


Sources:

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Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, Wikipedia, 16 November 2011, from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_Revolution

Red Guards, Wikipedia, 16 November 2011, from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Guards_%28China%29

Mao Zedong, Wikipedia, 16 November 2011, from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mao_Zedong

Flag Translation by Prof. Benjamin L. Read, Politics Department, University of California, Santa Cruz letter of 17 February 2012, Zaricor Flag Collection Archives

Image Credits:
Zaricor Flag Collection

Hoist & Fly
Width of Hoist	8
Length of Fly	18.25

Frame
Is it framed?	yes
Frame Height	66
Frame Length	76

Stars
Are there stars on obverse?	no
Are there stars on reverse?	no

Stripes
Has a Blood Stripe?	no

Crest/Emblem
Description of Crest/Emblem	Proletarian revolutionary rebels' great unified Command center City of Tianjin Copper Electrolysis Plant, Number __

Nationality
Nation Represented	China

Fabric
Fabric	Silk

Applica
Applique Sides	Single Sided = Design on one side only

Documentation
Documents	All original documents and drawings are held in the Zaricor Flag Collection Archives.
Drawings	All original documents and drawings are held in the Zaricor Flag Collection Archives.

Condition
Condition	Good
Damage	used
Displayable	yes

Date
Date	1968

Exhibits

Exhibition Copy

University of California - Santa Cruz Board of Councilors Meeting, Rare Flags Exhibit Santa Cruz, CA 7 June 2012 Santa Cruz, CA, June 7, 2012: The Zaricor Flag Collection exhibited 34 flags and artifacts at the University of California Santa Cruz Campus for the Board of Councilors Meeting. People's Liberation Army Flag, Unit 8706 with Red Guard Armband Date: 1968 Media: Printed silk & printed cotton. Comment: The Red Guards were paramilitary units of radical students and workers which were formed during the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution or Chinese Cultural Revolution from 1966 to 1976. It was the response to Mao Zedong's call to revitalize the revolutionary spirit of the Chinese Communist Party, and by extension China itself. During this era the Red Guards made banners and flags and began wearing red armbands, scarves and pins and carrying the infamous Little Red Book. As evidenced by this flag, the students and workers evolved a cult of Mao, and his image often graced these items. Translation of the characters reads: "Memorial to honor, having received a cordial meeting with the great leader Chairman Mao on August 11th 1968; The great leader Chairman Mao meeting with military cadres is the greatest glory and the great happiness of our army; all the comrades of the 8706th unit having participated in Mao Zedong Thought call held by Chinese Communist Party Central Committee in Beijing." This is framed with a companion piece, ZFC3016, an armband inscribed, "Proletarian revolutionary rebels' great unified command center City of Tianjin, Copper Electrolysis Plant." Chinese Cultural Revolution items, while ubiquitous in China between 1966 and 1976, are quire scarce in the West. Provenance: Acquired by Zaricor Flag Collection (ZFC0753 & ZFC3016) by private purchase in 2004. www.FlagCollection.com