American Historical Ephemera & Photography

Approx. 3 x 6 3/4 in. flag remnant purportedly removed from the Stars and Bars flag flying at the Confederate Capitol on 4 April 1865. Accompanied by a modern record of provenance, which states that the flag relic was collected by Methodist minister John O. Foster, who was attached to the 24th Army Corps and likely preached one of the first sermons after the fall of Richmond on 4 April 1865. He was given a pass to enter Richmond between 3-4 April, and during his time in the city, Foster received a section of the massive Confederate flag that flew over the Confederate State House. In Foster's diary entry discussed in the accompanying modern description (diary not included with the lot), he describes a visit to the Confederate Treasury, stating that he was allowed to "help himself" to the bonds and Confederate notes. He took as many as possible and glued sections of the Confederate flag he was given onto the bonds and notes. This remnant from the flag that once flew at the Confederate Capitol shows a Confederate "Corporation of Richmond" banknote on the reverse side that Foster had purportedly taken from the CSA Treasury (toning to each side, wear to edges, including some chipping, areas of minor loss).