Flag Chart (5 results)

Very good. Size 19.25 x 22.25 Inches. An attractive c. 1765 flag chart by Matthias Seutter and Tobias Conrad Lotter. The chart features 139 flags of various nations, factions, and trading companies. Among the more interesting flags are those of the Dutch West India Company (G.W.C. / Geoctroyeerde Westindische Compagnie) and the Dutch East India Company (V.O.C. / Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie). The premier placement of English flags in the upper left quadrant suggests that this chart may have been originally derived from an English source. Dragon Flag of China At the bottom center, the flag of the Empire of China (Sina) stands out. It appears as a great whirlpool surrounded by eight decorations. This is most likely based upon an image of the Chinese flag appearing in Carl Allard's 1705 Dutch flag book, Niewe Hollandse Scheeps Bouw . It misinterprets the Qing flag, a dragon on a yellow field with eight banners. European engravers, having never seen a Chinese flag, interpreted the dragon to the best of their ability. Publication History and Census This chart is directly based on a Dutch flag chart issued by Danckerts c. 1700. The chart was copied up by J. B. Homann, who issued in own variant c. 1710. When Seutter left the Homann firm early in the 18th century, he may have taken this plate with him or copied it. Seutter issued his own variant sometime after 1737, as the chart notes his privilege , a kind of early copyright suggestive of royal patronage, at top center. After the 1762 death of Seutter's son, Albrecht Carl Seutter, the plate for this map was acquired by Tobias Conrad Lotter, Matthias Seutter's son in law, who added his own imprint at bottom center - as in the present example. We note two examples of a flag chart bearing this title (dated to 1735 - so at least one of these examples represents an earlier edition) in the OCLC: Universitätsbibliothek Freiburg and the Universität Eichstätt-Ingolstadt. References: OCLC 313397823.

Good. Laid down on linen, poster style, and stabilized. Exhibits wear and repaired splits along original fold lines. Size 22.25 x 34.25 Inches. This is a c. 1919 Gale and Polden flag chart of the British Empire and other nations. A Closer Look The flags of the British Empire occupy the center, with the Royal Standard of Great Britain and Ireland taking pride of place. It is also by far the largest flag on the chart. British military flags, along with the Union Jack and St. George's Cross, border the Royal Standard. Below the section dedicated to the British Empire, the colonial flags and badges identifying British colonies worldwide from the West Indies to Southeast Asia and Hong Kong are illustrated. Other specifically British content includes the flags of the Royal Yacht Clubs, Britain's special coast flags, and a table detailing the British Semaphore. Content not specific to Britain fills the remaining space. National flags, admiral's flags, and signals for pilots from various nations provide country-specific content. International content, including international code signal flags, international signals of distress, and a table discussing more code, provide a global perspective. Four photographs of British naval vessels occupy the four corners. Proceeding clockwise from top left, they are: H.M.S. Lion, H.M.S. King George V, a naval airship and an early naval airplane, and Submarine E. 2. Publication History and Census This chart was published by Gale and Polden c. 1919. We have located several different editions of this chart. The most noticeable difference between editions is variations in the photographs. We have been unable to locate another example of this edition.

Very good. Minor verso reinforcement along original centerfold. Tallow discoloration in the lower right. Size 20 x 23 Inches. A vexillological wonder, this is the 1711 Pieter Schenk flag chart, here printed in unusual burgundy ink. In addition to its unusual color, this chart is significant for its inclusion of the ephemeral Globe Flag of New England (upper right corner). It also includes the flags of various trading companies, including the Dutch East India Company (VOC, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie ) and the Dutch West India Company (WIC, Geoctroyeerde Westindische Compagnie ). New England Globe Flag This chart's most historically significant element is its illustration of the ephemeral New England Globe Flag, one of the earliest New England flags and, in fact, one of the earliest examples of a fully American flag. This flag and its appearance on this chart are described in the Rhode Island Historical Society Collections (January 1930, Volume XXIII, page 97): The first dated reference to the globe flag seems to be in the 'Schouw-Park aller Scheeps-Vlaggen' or 'Tableau des Pavilions de Mer,' which was published by Pieter Schenk at Amsterdam in 1711. The New England flag is shown hand-colored, with the colors also shown by tincture lines, as a blue flag, with a white canton with a red cross and a globe on a standard in the first quarter of the canton. The globe is outlined in black, but no color is specified. No reference to this globe flag has been found in any contemporary English or American writings New England had several early flags. The earliest was the flag of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, a white canton on a red field, of which there are no surviving illustrations. The flag changed c. 1686 to include St. George's Cross and a pine or oak tree in the upper left quadrant. The oak tree was reinterpreted as a globe, and the field changed to blue around 1711, when this chart was issued, making it one of the earliest, if not the first, printed illustrations of the Globe Flag of New England. Corporate Flags This chart features several other rarely seen flags, including the flags of the VOC and WIC (important Dutch merchant trading companies) in the upper right. Although private commercial ventures, these companies had the military and financial power of independent nations and were often treated as such. Other Flags At the bottom center, the flag of the Empire of China (Sina) stands out. It appears as a great whirlpool surrounded by eight decorations. This is most likely based upon an image of the Chinese flag appearing in Carel Allard's 1705 Dutch flag book Niewe Hollandse Scheeps Bouw . In fact, it is a misinterpretation of the Qing flag, a dragon on a yellow field with eight banners. However, Schenk, likely having never seen a Chinese flag, interpreted the dragon to the best of his ability. Also included in this chart are the following interesting flags: Spanish Galicia, Barcelona, Galicia, Biscay, Majorca, Jerusalem, Ragusa (Sicily), Riga, Constantinople, Slavonia, Persia, Nanking (Nanjing), the King of the Tartars, Tartary, and the Empire of Japan. Publication History and Census This map was issued in Amsterdam by Petrus Schenk in 1711, the last year of his life. While examples of his chart do occasionally appear, this is the only such we have seen printed with red ink. Extremely striking. References: OCLC 694019827. Rhode Island Historical Society Collections January 1930, Volume XXIII, page 97.

Very good. Slight toning. Size 25.5 x 36.5 Inches. This is an exceptional 1756 J. N. Bellin / Dépôt de la Marine vexillology or flag chart illustrating worldwide maritime ensigns. It illustrates a total of 160 flags, most representing European powers, but some representing religious societies, Asian and African nations, and trading companies. Trading Ensigns Trading companies represented include the VOC (Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie) or Dutch East India Company. Here, the 'V' in the company logo is erroneously engraved as an 'A.' Also noted is the GWC (Geoctrooieerde Westindische Compagnie) or Dutch West India Company. Although both houses were once global powerhouses, leveraging enormous wealth and large private armies, by the time this chart was issued, they were near the end of a long period of decline. Both lasted until the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War (1780 - 1784), after which they were dissolved and nationalized by the Batavian Republic. Flags of the Tartars Another item of exceptional interest is the two flags of the Tartars in the lower right - one bearing a dragon (or griffin), the other an owl, both against a yellow field. These flags first appeared in the Carl Allard flag chart of 1694 and were copied by many subsequent charts. Little is known of their origins. The chart suggests that the dragon or griffin represents the Tartar Emperor, the Khan himself, while the owl is a general flag for the Tartar Khanates. At the time, there were many Tartar Khanates. The dragon may refer to Zilant, a legendary creature commonly associated with the Kazan Khanate. However, the Kazan Khanate was landlocked and is unlikely to have ever fielded a navy, leading to further speculation that the flag refers to the Crimean Khanate (1441 - 1783), which maintained a Black Sea fleet. The owl figure on the second Tartar flag is even more mysterious. Allard posits it as an alternative 'Tartar' flag, but other than Allard derivates, we can find no reference to it. Publication History and Census This chart was compiled by Jacques Nicholas Bellin and published by the Dépôt des Cartes et Plans de la Marine, a French mapping agency similar to the U.S. Coast Survey or British Admiralty. It was issued both for separate sale and for inclusion in French nautical atlases. The map is quite rare. We note examples only at the Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek Düsseldorf and Bibliothèque nationale de France. We also note at least two examples that have appeared privately in the late 20 years. References: OCLC 693403856. Bibliothèque nationale de France, RESERVE QB-201 (171)-FT 5 [Hennin, 8827].

Very good. Verso repairs to fold separations. Closed margin tear professionally repaired on verso. Size 25.5 x 26.25 Inches. A stunning c. 1914 Adams and Company Ltd. and 'Brown Son and Ferguson' chromolithograph vexillology chart illustrating the 'flags of all nations'. This chart was issued in 1914 or 1915 at the outset of World War I. Underscoring the maritime might of the British Empire, the chart his heavily Anglo-focused, with dozens of flags associated with the British Empire, its vast private and naval fleets, and its colonial dependencies. The chart also offers flags for dozens of other countries. Among these are detailed keys to standards used by European powers, including France, Germany, Norway, Austria-Hungary, and Russia. Multiple flags from China, Turkey, Japan, and the United States are included as well. Flags from Royal Yacht Clubs line the left and right sides. Along the bottom of the chart there is additional information useful to the armchair mariner regarding the identification of different types of ships, and the complex naming of ship rigging. Chromolithography Chromolithography is a color lithographic technique developed in the mid-19th century. The process involved using multiple lithographic stones, one for each color, to yield a rich composite effect. Oftentimes, the process would start with a black basecoat upon which subsequent colors were layered. Some chromolithographs used 30 or more separate lithographic stones to achieve the desired effect. Chromolithograph color could also be effectively blended for even more dramatic results. The process became extremely popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when it emerged as the dominate method of color printing. The vivid color chromolithography produced made it exceptionally effective for advertising and propaganda imagery. Publication History and Census This chart was published in Glasgow and London by 'Brown Sons and Ferguson' in partnership with Adams and Company. There are multiple editions of this chart issued from about 1900 through World War II published by several different firms. The present chart, with its extensive treatment of ship nomenclature in the lower quadrants, is among the most elaborate of the series. Most examples are undated, but from the accompanying text, we can date this chart to c. 1914.