The American Flag: Two Centuries of Concord & Conflict

At last a book has arrived that can be described as the "successor to Mastai"! I'm referring, of course, to the great 1973 volume The Stars and Stripes: The American Flag as Art and History from the Birth of the Republic to the Present, by Boleslaw and Maie-Louise D'Otrange Mastai. Now, a generation later, comes another fine, full-color book depicting the history of the U.S. flag with real examples of actual historic flags. Like Mastai, Concord & Conflict is at its base a collection catalog, telling the story of the flag through the holdings of the Zaricor collection, supplemented by quilts from the collection of Louise Veninga and memorabilia assembled by San Francisco graphic designer Kit Hinrichs. In fact, some of the flags depicted were acquired from the Mastai collection by Ben Zaricor, a Santa Cruz businessman and one of the most prominent U.S. flag collectors today. The core of the book was the landmark 2003 Presidio exhibition, called "one of the top 10 pop culture events of the year" by the San Francisco Chronicle. Unlike Mastai, however, this book delivers the sound scholarship of two leading vexillologists rather than the personal opinions of the Mastais (who propagated, among other myths, the concept of the "war stripe"--an inaccuracy traceable entirely to the eager imagination of Boleslaw Mastai). The late Howard Madaus curated the Presidio exhibition, drawing on his expertise as one of the leading historians of the U.S. flag. He had served, among other roles, as the chief curator of the National Civil War Museum, and published extensively, including several important books and articles. Dr. Whitney Smith, director of the Flag Research Center, collaborated extensively on the text of the book, one of twenty-plus (so far) by the organizer of modern vexillology. Concord & Conflict literally teems with flag images--well over a hundred flags (plus related items)--many averaging 4" x 6" and larger. A full page is devoted to most, with approximately 250 words of text about each flag. Among the gems: an early 16-star "Grand Luminary" from 1796-1803; General George Armstrong Custer's third personal cavalry headquarters guidon (made by his wife in 1864) substantiated by a contemporary photograph; and the car flags from President Kennedy's limousine (acquired by his secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, on 25 November 1963). High production values characterize the book. The chapters run chronologically, from "A New Constellation: 13 Stars and 13 Stripes for a New Nation" to "A Symbol of World Power: The Stars and Stripes at Home and Abroad". The book ends with a thoughtful commentary by Ben Zaricor: "Whose Flag Is It, Anyway?". The passion of the collector spills through: since 1970 he and his family have collected more than 2,500 flags, quilts, and other flag-related items. Zaricor's strong feeling for the flag's symbolism is demonstrated by his unusual but stirring practice of hoisting nearly every historic flag he acquires, n