Hello! We have an antique 13 star flag we need to frame properly. Can y'all help?

[laurielward]

Hello! What a joy to find y'all! My brother has my grandfather's flag, a rare American flag with 13 stars, (we have a newspaper clipping of him holding it when he was little).

He will be fifty this month and we want to frame the flag properly so it will be protected and he can proudly put it up at his home. (Though he may be tempted to give it to his son when he graduates as an elementary school teacher...we're a bit afraid it will get stolen...maybe y'all can tell us how to effectively "thief proof" it in a public school).

Aaron Brothers, a local custom framing store has a 25% off coupon for the next few days and we were thinking about taking it there. Are there things were should/shouldn't do? It is fragile and so special, we have been afraid to even touch it over the years. I'm sure the glass needs to be UV, but other than making sure they don't try to affix it to anything inside the frame, I'm out of ideas.

I figure this site should know everything there is to know or at least where to find answers!

Thank you so much for your time and consideration!

Sincerely,

Laurie from Texas

[NAVA1974]

Laurie,
I am sorry that I did not see your post earlier. Aaron Bros. is a decent place that will use museum / archival materials upon request. They would probably recommend them, actually, since they are more expensive (naturally.) Acid free materials and UV resistant plexiglass are a must (no glass as it would be too heavy and could damage the flag if it broke.) The flag should first be carefully sewn to a piece of pre-stretched, unbleached muslin fabric with enough stitches to hold the flag in place but not so many that the flag is damaged. The muslin should be stretched ahead of time so that the flag is not stressed when you try to stretch the muslin after the flag is stitched to it.

Can you send us a picture of the flag? There are no known authentic 13 star flags from the 1700's and it would be interesting to see how old you family's flag is. 13 star flags have been made continuously over the last 232 years and their age can be narrowed down by the materials, stitching methods, etc.

Nick