What are we doing to save New York State's Battle Flags?
Click on the images below to enlarge them.
In order to place the flags in flat storage, they must first be removed from their staffs. It is important to document how each flag is attached to its staff. The flag archive will have a separate area equipped to store the staffs.
A textile conservator gently vacuums a flag to remove soils that have accumulated during storage.
Textile conservators carefully manipulate the fabric to help realign the fabric. This can be done in a humidity chamber using a small, controlled amount of humidity. This reduces stresses in the fabric and makes it easier to read the information on the flag.
Once the surface dirt has been removed and a flag has been realigned, it is carefully transferred to its support fabric. If the flag is to remain in the archive, it is not attached to the support.
Under the Microscope in the Conservation Lab:
Consideration of previous repairs
Consideration of previous treatments
Some examples of current conservation treatments
© NYS DMNA: Military History Museum: New York State Battle Flag Conservation Process
Creation of a flag archive will permit historians, descendants of soldiers, or anyone interested in the flags, to have information and images of the flags in much the same way that papers and books in a research library are available, but safely preserved.