U.S. Trapunto, In Memory of Philippine Cruise.

U.S. Army, Trapunto, "In Memory of My Cruise in Philippine Islands", 1900.
A trapunto is an ornately embroidered commemorative fabric. Making a trapunto involves the addition of padding behind a piece of silk, upon which elaborate designs are embroidered to create a three-dimensional image. It was not uncommon for trapuntos of the time to contain many patriotic symbols.

Many trapuntos made and sold by the George Washington Co. in Yokohama, Japan in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Their market included American soldiers and sailors stationed in the Far East during the Spanish American War, the Philippine-American War, the Boxer Rebellion and the Great White Fleet.

The young soldier who commissioned this trapunto chose to include an image of himself nestled among the panoply of flags representing nations with imperial and economic interests in Asia. On the left are the flags of Great Britain (merchant flag), Holland, Spain, Sweden, and Imperial China. On the right are the flags of the United States, Italy, Greece, Norway, and Japan. Surrounding the central panoply the names of the countries the soldier visited (Philippines, China, and Japan) are embroidered.

Compare with other Trapuntos in the Zaricor Flag Collection: ZFC0150, ZFC0284, ZFC0289
ZFC0742, ZFC1441, ZFC1489, ZFC2219 and ZFC2258

Exhibition History:

Second Presidio Exhibit, 2003 - GALLERY VI
Trapunto with Portrait

War & Dissent
The US in the Philippines 1898 1915
October 22 2008 to February 22, 2009
At the Presidio of San Francisco, Officers Club Exhibition Hall

Publication History:
Madaus, Howard M., Dr, Whitney Smith, The American Flag: Two Centuries of Concord and Conflict. Santa Cruz: VZ Publications, 2006, p. 111.

Provenance: Acquired by purchase by the Veninga Flag Collection in 1998.

ZFC Significant Flag
Item is Framed

Sources:

---

Madaus, Howard M.- Whitney Smith, The American Flag: Two Centuries of Concord and Conflict, VZ Publications, Santa Cruz, 2006. Pp. 111.

October 18th to October 25th - Yokohama, Japan, The Great White Fleet, 5 October 2011, from: http://www.greatwhitefleet.info/The_Great_White_Fleet_Japan.html

Image Credits:
Zaricor Flag Collection

Hoist & Fly
Width of Hoist	15
Length of Fly	12

Frame
Is it framed?	yes
Frame Height	16
Frame Length	19.5

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

Stripes
Has a Blood Stripe?	no

Nationality
Nation Represented	United States

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, background slightly faded
Displayable	yes

Date
Date	1900s

Exhibits

Exhibition Copy

Second Presidio Exhibit, 2003 - GALLERY VI (LV91) (ZFC0742) Trapunto with Portrait Date: About 19071912 Media: Cotton with silk and metallic embroidery; ferrotype on sheet iron Comment: During the early part of the 20th century it was not uncommon for sailors, marines, and soldiers visiting the orient to acquire souvenir embroideries to commemorate their visits to Asiatic ports. The young soldier who commissioned this commemorating trapunto had a tintype portrait of himself in uniform centered below the U.S. eagle. His portrait is surrounded by panoply of flags of the nations that had economic or imperial interests in the area. On the left are the flags of Great Britain (merchant flag), Holland, Spain, Sweden, and Imperial China. On the right are the flags of the United States, Italy, Greece, Norway, and Japan. Embroidered surrounding the central panoply are the names of the countries visited Philippines, China, and Japan. Provenance: Acquired by the Veninga Flag Collection (LV91) in 1998. The exhibition text was written by Howard Michael Madaus, Exhibition Director of the ZFC's Flag Center, utilizing Zaricor Flag Collection archives. War & Dissent The US in the Philippines 1898 1915 October 22 2008 to February 22, 2009 At the Presidio of San Francisco, Officers Club Exhibition Hall 50 Moraga Ave, San Francisco, CA Trapunto In Memory of My Cruise in Philippine Islands Insurance Value $ 3,600 A trapunto is an ornately embroidered commemorative fabric. Many were made by the George Washington Company of Yokohama, Japan and bought by soldiers and sailors stationed in Asia. This one features a tintype of an unidentified US soldier below an American eagle, and is surrounded by the flags of the principle nations that had economic and imperial interests in Asia. On the left are the flags of the United Kingdom, Imperial Germany, Spain, Sweden and Imperial China. On the right are the flags of the U.S., the Kingdom of Italy, Greece, Denmark and Imperial Japan.

Publications

Publication Copy

Publication Copy: Madaus, Howard M., Dr, Whitney Smith, The American Flag: Two Centuries of Concord and Conflict. Santa Cruz: VZ Publications, 2006, p. 111. Trapunto with Portrait The young soldier who commissioned the commemorative trapunto above had a tintype portrait of himself in uniform centered below the U.S. eagle. His portrait is surrounded by a panoply of the flags of the nations that had economic or imperial interests in the area. On the left are the flags of Great Britain (merchant flag), Germany, Spain, Sweden, and imperial China. On the right are the flags of the United States, Italy, Greece, Norway, and Japan. Embroidered surrounding the central panoply are the names of the countries visited: Philippines, China, and Japan. This piece dates from the presidency of William Howard Taft. Date: About 1907 1912 Size: 12" wide x 15" long Medium: Cotton with silk and metallic embroidery; ferrotype on sheet iron Provenance: Acquired by the Veninga Flag Collection in 1998. LV91 / ZFC0742