Photo of Captured North Korean Flag Held by U.S. Marines .
This is an 8" X 11" black and white photographic reprint of an original 1950 photograph, #127-GK-234A-A4692, in the collections of the National Archives and Records Administration. It depicts two US Marines at the Chosin Reservoir holding a captured North Korean flag. The ZFC has an actual Captured Flag of North Korea (see ZFC3241) which is very scarce in relation to all the other American wars in the 20th century with the exception of Boxer Rebellion in 1900 in Beijing, China and Central American Banana Wars of the 1920's.
This image gives new meaning to the term "Cold War" as it clearly evidences the winter conditions faced by the Marines in November and December of 1950. The photograph shows two US Marines, Sergeant Richard E. Cly and an unidentified Marine rifleman displaying a captured North Korean flag after the fierce fighting at Chosin Reservoir in November and December 1950.
Sgt. Cly, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, served with the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines in Korea. Capturing an enemy flag is often considered one of the greatest of battlefield achievements and flags are highly prized as both war trophies and souvenirs.
Provenance: Acquired in 2009 at an Internet auction.
ZFC Noteworthy Flag
Sources:
Veterans Armed Forces network Image Gallery, Korean War, 20 May 2012, from; http://vafnet.net/modules.php?name=gallery1&g2_itemId=6851
2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, Wikipedia, 20 May 2012, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2nd_Battalion_7th_Marines
War Trophy, Wikipedia, 20 May 2012, from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_trophy
Image Credits:
Zaricor Flag Collection
