What flag collectors actually do

Most of the time goes to three things: finding flags, identifying them, and keeping them in good shape. New flags come from flag makers and online sellers, so that side is simple shopping. Older flags turn up at estate sales, antique malls, military shows and online auctions, usually folded in a drawer with no label. You bring one home, look it up, write down what it is and where it came from, then decide whether it gets flown, hung, framed or stored. A typical session is an hour or two at a table with a flag, a reference book and a notebook.

Rows of small national flags on short staffs mounted up a gray wall

02

Which kind of collection do you want?

Four ways to build one

Full-Size FlagsNew 3x5 foot flags of countries, states, cities or historical designs. The widest choice and the easiest to buy, and each one can be flown or hung on a wall. You need room to store them.

Start here

Pick one set to finish (the countries you have visited, the 50 states, your family's home countries) and buy the first flag in a sewn 3x5 foot nylon. Fly or hang it this week so you learn how a full-size flag behaves.

Flags of the World (FOTW)

Desk FlagsSmall 4x6 inch flags on sticks that stand in a base. A full set of world flags fits on one shelf and costs less than three full-size flags, which makes this the pick for a small space.

Start here

Buy a boxed set of small country flags and a display base, then set out one continent at a time and learn each flag before you swap in the next group.

Vintage FlagsOld flags, most often American ones with 45, 46, 48 or 49 stars. Each is a dated object with its own history, and learning to tell a real one from a later copy is the skill.

Start here

Count the stars on every old American flag you see at estate sales and antique malls this month. Buy your first one only after you can date it from the star count, the cloth and the stitching.

North American Vexillological Association (NAVA)

Signal FlagsThe maritime code flags ships use to spell messages, one flag per letter. A complete set is a finished collection on day one, and the bold shapes make a good wall display.

Start here

Get a full set of the 26 alphabet signal flags, then spell your name or a boat's name and hang the string along a wall or porch.

Open a kind to see its first step. Each one ends in a button that adds its gear to the kit and takes the other kinds out. To collect more than one kind, switch on the extra add-ons in the cart.

03

How to judge a flag before you buy

Cloth

Nylon is light, bright and flies in a light breeze. Polyester is heavier and lasts longer outdoors. Cotton looks traditional and hangs well indoors but fades and rots outside. Thin printed polyester is the cheapest and the first to fray.

Sewn or printed

On a sewn flag each stripe is a separate strip of cloth and stars or emblems are embroidered or stitched on. On a printed flag the design is dyed onto one sheet. Sewn costs more and looks far better up close.

The back

Most flags are single layer, so the reverse is a mirror image. A flag with lettering or a seal may be sold double-sided, which reads correctly on both sides but weighs twice as much and needs more wind.

The hoist edge

Look for a heavy canvas strip (the header) with two brass rings (grommets) on the pole side. Four rows of stitching on the opposite edge, the fly end, means it will resist fraying.

Proportions

US flags sold as 3x5 feet are slightly squarer than the official shape, and many countries have their own official ratio. A collector's listing states the real size.

Where it was made

Listings that name the maker and the country of manufacture are a sign of a better flag. No maker, no cloth weight and a very low price usually means thin printed polyester.

04

Dating an old American flag

Count the stars first. 45 stars means 1896 to 1908, 46 stars 1908 to 1912, 48 stars 1912 to 1959, 49 stars 1959 to 1960, and 50 stars 1960 to today.
48-star flags are the common starting point because they were made for 47 years, including both World Wars. 49-star flags were official for only one year, so they are scarcer.
Feel the cloth. Wool bunting and cotton were standard before the 1940s. Nylon became common after World War II and polyester later still, so a slick synthetic 45-star flag is a modern reproduction.
Look at the stars. Hand-sewn stars point to the 1800s. Machine zigzag stitching around each star became normal from the 1890s. Printed stars on thin cotton usually mean a small parade flag.
Check the hoist edge. Brass grommets, hand-whipped eyelets and tie strings all appear on old flags. A maker's stamp or a size inked on the header helps you trace it.
Shine an ultraviolet light on it in a dark room. Modern synthetic thread and brightened cotton glow blue-white, so a flag sold as 19th century that lights up needs a hard second look.

05

Your first two weeks

06

Keeping flags in good shape

Light does the most damage. Keep displayed flags out of direct sun and rotate which ones are out every few months.
Roll, do not fold. Fold lines crack old cloth over time. Roll a flag around a tube covered in acid-free tissue, or lay it flat with tissue padding any fold you cannot avoid.
Store in archival boxes, not cardboard, cedar chests or plastic bins. Ordinary cardboard and wood give off acid, and sealed plastic traps damp.
Never wash, iron or dry-clean an old flag. Old dyes run and weak fibers tear. A new nylon flag can be hand washed in cool water and hung to dry.
Handle old flags with clean, dry hands on a clean table, and support the whole flag rather than lifting it by one corner.
Do not use tape, glue, pins or staples on a flag you care about. For framing an old flag, ask for a framer who stitches it to a fabric-covered backing and uses UV-filtering glazing.

A worn cotton American flag laid flat, close on the star field and stripes — A worn cotton flag laid flat

07

What trips beginners up

Flags take up room quickly. Twenty full-size flags fill a large box, so decide how you will store them before you buy the tenth.
Buying everything that looks interesting leaves you with a pile, not a collection. Stick to the theme you chose for the first year.
Stories sell old flags. A flag said to have flown on a famous ship or at a battle is worth the story only with paperwork, so pay for the flag in front of you.
Condition matters more than age. Moth holes in wool, splits along folds and heavy fading all cut value, and repairs done with modern thread do too.
Reproductions of rare old flags are common and are often aged on purpose. Compare cloth, stitching and star count against the dating rules before paying antique prices.

08

Rules worth knowing

The US Flag Code sets out how the American flag should be displayed: the blue field goes at the top left as you look at it, it should not touch the ground, and it is lit if flown at night. The code is guidance for civilians and carries no penalty, but collectors generally follow it. It also says a flag too worn to display should be retired in a dignified way, which American Legion posts, VFW posts and Scout troops do for free. That advice is for ordinary worn-out flags. A historic flag is kept and conserved however tattered it is. Other countries have their own display rules, and some restrict private use of their national flag or state arms, so check before flying a foreign government flag abroad.

09

Where to learn more

Free flag reference sites cover almost every flag ever flown, with notes on variants and dates that no single book matches. Flag societies publish research, run yearly meetings and are the best way to meet people who can identify an odd find from a photo. History museums and state capitols often display old flags behind glass, and seeing real 19th century wool bunting in person teaches more than any picture.

Flag references and societies

The masts of moored sailing ships hung with strings of signal flags and pennants — Sailing ships dressed in signal flags

10

How the kit is put together

The base kit is small on purpose: a reference book to identify what you find, and archival tissue and a box so cloth survives storage. That is all every collector needs. The flags themselves depend on the collection you picked above, so each kind is an add-on. Full-Size Flags adds a first sewn flag and a pole to fly it from. Desk Flags adds a boxed set of small flags and a base to stand them in. Vintage Flags adds a magnifier and an ultraviolet light for checking cloth and thread, and no flag at all, because old flags are bought one at a time from dealers, shows and estate sales. Signal Flags adds a full code set.

Strings of country flags from around the world hung across a street

11

Stock the flag locker

Every line, with three options each

Compare the options on each line, then set your tiers and check out from the cart. Clicking a card selects it there, and clicking the selected card again takes that line out. The reference book, the tissue and the storage box start in the kit. Everything else joins when you switch on its kind of collection: Full-Size Flags, Desk Flags, Vintage Flags or Signal Flags.

No. 01

Flags of the world reference book

Essential · Reference

You cannot collect what you cannot name. A reference book shows every national flag with its history and proportions, so you can identify a find and spot a wrong design.

budget

The Complete Guide to Flags of the World, 4th Edition (IMM Lifestyle Books) 220 Countries and Territories, 600+ Photos, Flag History and Symbolism, Statistics, De Facto States, and More

4.6(12)

$14.99

Flag Collecting

What flag collectors actually do

Which kind of collection do you want?

How to judge a flag before you buy

Dating an old American flag

Your first two weeks

Keeping flags in good shape

What trips beginners up

Rules worth knowing

Where to learn more

How the kit is put together

Stock the flag locker

Flags of the world reference book

Acid-free unbuffered tissue paper

Archival textile storage box

Sewn 3x5 foot nylon flag

Flagpole kit with wall bracket

Miniature world flag set on sticks

Multi-hole desk flag display stand

Linen tester magnifier loupe

UV blacklight flashlight

Nautical signal flag set