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REVERSE

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Obverse

ZFC0077

U.S. 7 Star Commission Pennant - USS Francis Scott

Sub-collection: Star Spangled Banner Flag House

USS Francis Scott Key, 7 star US Commissioning Pennant, Nuclear Submarine, used at launch, 1966
There are 7 white stars on the blue canton plus one red and one white stripe in the Navy's "commission pennant." In the great age of sailing vessels, all navy ships had a "suite of flags" -- jack, ensign, and pennant. The tradition continues to the present day, although all three flags are only rarely displayed simultaneously.

The US Navy commission pennant has always had a blue area with stars (corresponding to the canton of the ensign) near the heading. The remainder of the length has been divided into red and white stripes. The earliest versions, however, sometimes added a horizontal blue stripe or had red and white vertical stripes between the "union" and the elongated red over white stripes of the pennant's fly.

Today this pennant is displayed to indicate that a particular vessel is in active service but not under the command of a flag officer. If such an officer is on board his rank flag replaces the commission pennant. The ZFC0077 pennant carries only 7 stars instead of the traditional 13, a design which has been standard since the 1930s. Previously, both 7-star and 13-star pennants

An significant flag from the Star Spangled Banner Flag House Collection. coexisted for decades.

ZFC Significant Flag
Item is Framed

Sources:



National Colors: Ensign, Jack, and Commission Pennant, Sea Flags, 14 November 2011, from: http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeohzt4/Seaflags/ensign/Ensign.html

Navy - Command and Commissioning Pennants (U.S.), Wikipedia, 14 November 2011, from: http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/us%5Envcp.html

Commissioning Pennant, NAVAL HISTORICAL CENTER, 14 November 2011, from: http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq106-1.htm

USS Francis Scott Key, Wikipedia, 11 November 2011, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Francis_Scott_Key_%28SSBN-657%29

Image Credits:
Zaricor Flag Collection



Hoist & Fly

Width of Hoist 44
Length of Fly 2

Union/Canton

Width of Union/Canton 11.5
Length of Union/Canton 2

Stars

Size of Stars 0.75

Stripes

Width of 1st Stripe 1
Width of Last Stripe 0.75
Size of Hoist 2

Frame

Is it framed? yes
Frame Height 8
Frame Length 48

Stars

Number of Stars 7
How are the stars embeded? Printed
Are there stars on obverse? yes
Are there stars on reverse? yes

Stripes

Number of Stripes 2
Color of Top Stripe Red
Color of Bottom Stripe White
Has a Blood Stripe? no

Nationality

Nation Represented United States

Fabric

Fabric Nylon
Comments on Fabric Nylon

Stitching

Stitching Machine

Thread

Thread Material Cotton

Attachment

Method of Attachment Grommets

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 Wrinkled
Displayable yes