This Argentine war flag was used from 1945 for several decades until being modified by legislation in 1978.
This wool Argentine war flag and ensign conforms to a general pattern described in 1945 and used for several decades until finally being modified by legislation in 1978. This particular flag was made by Abacrome, Inc. a New York City flag maker. The flag is finished with a brass snap and ring, a common method of attachment utilized by the United States Navy. It is highly likely that this is a contract flag made for the United States Navy to use as a Courtesy Ensign. Courtesy Ensigns are worn by US Naval vessels when cruising in territorial waters or anchoring in foreign ports. This flag can be dated by the design of the "Son of May" on the center stripe, and the absence of a Zip Code on the Abacrome, Inc. makers mark, indicate that this flag was made between 1945 and 1963.
The flag's colors of celeste (sky blue) and white and are popularly said to derive from the colors of the sky, clouds and the sun. However, some historians usually discount this and attribute them as an overt symbol of loyalty towards the House of Bourbon and the Spanish King Ferdinand VII, who was once a prisoner of Napoleon. Whether such loyalty was real or a façade is a topic of dispute; however the creation of a new flag was one method of denoting autonomy while maintaining positive relations with the captive Spanish king.
The flag was created as an unornamented tri-band, by Manuel Belgrano, an Argentine economist, lawyer, politician, and military leader, who noticed that both sides in the independence movement were utilizing the red and yellow of Spain. To remedy this, on 18 February 1812 he created first the Argentine Cockade in blue and white and nine days later the flag. The central emblem the "Sun of May" first appeared on Argentine coins in 1813, and the two symbols were combined on the flag 1n 1818.
From 1818, until first codified in 1945 there were numerous variants in both the design of the Sun of May and the shades of celeste. This version is typical of these variants in that the design of the sun is an interpretation of the "Sun of May" with enlarges facial features.
Provenance: Acquired by purchase in the 1970s from J&S Military surplus, Moss Landing, CA.
Sources:
Argentina, Flags of the World, 30 November 2011, from:
http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/ar.html#bwb
Flag of Argentina, Wikipedia, 30 November 2011, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Argentina
Image Credits:
Zaricor Flag Collection
