PLEASE NOTE: WE ARE IN THE OFFICE Through TUESDAY 09/16,
AFTER That Date, We Will Be OUT OF THE OFFICE from WEDNESDAY 09/17 until TUESDAY OCTOBER 7th!!
Ron Will Be OUT OF THE OFFICE from WEDNESDAY 09/10 until FRIDAY OCTOBER 10th!!
So there MAY be SHIPPING DELAYS on MILITARIA Orders Placed AFTER 09/10 through 10/10!!
BUT We Will DEFINITELY Be ABLE TO SHIP Orders Placed Through TUESDAY 09/09,
And MIGHT Be ABLE TO SHIP ORDERS Placed through MONDAY 09/15, But After That we CANNOT SHIP Until TUESDAY 10/07!!
Update 09/09/25: WE ARE STILL EXPERIENCING TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES WITH non-PayPal CREDIT CARD PURCHASES!!
BIG WEBSITE CHANGES are in the works and this Issue WILL BE CORRECTED sometime in OCTOBER!!
If you would like to PAY for an Artifact valued at OVER $100.00 with a CREDIT CARD, please email and I will get an invoice emailed to you ASAP!
We are HAPPY TO ACCEPT YOUR ORDERS during this time, and we will promptly SHIP MOST orders within ONE Business Day of Receipt of Payment!
And, as always, if you would like to fund your $100.00+ order through a Bank that offers ZELLE, ASK ABOUT our ZELLE DISCOUNT!!
That DISCOUNT also applies to PayPal GIFT (Fee-Free), Check, and Money Order payments!!
Thank you for visiting. We hope you will find some vintage artifacts here on our site to add to your collection.
We look forward to serving your collecting needs, Ron & Kanae
ARTIFACT:
Here we have an absolutely beautiful American Volunteer Group souvenir. This piece started life as the famous so-called "Christmas Scarf" given to all of the Flying Tigers by Madame Chiang Kai Shek on December 25th, 1941 at a dinner honoring the group. The Generalissimo Chiang Kai-Shek's "Chop" can be seen in bold red near the bottom of the scarf. Many members of the AVG then took their scarf around and had other members sign their scarves. Later they had a local tailor shop embroider over the signatures, and add the Flying Tigers insignia at center, along with the AVG, Chinese 12 point sun, and USAAF Star above. Often the tiger is fully embroidered, this is the only one I have seen with the tiger outlined only.
This scarf bears one signature that raises a question as to when exactly these scarves were presented to AVG members. Near the Generalissimo's signature is that of AVG pilot Peter "Pete" Atkinson. Atkinson was killed in a training crash on October 31st, 1941, moving ahead considerably the time frame that these scarves were presented to the Tigers.
Truly a stunning piece, the pictures do it no justice! Among the signers are AVG Pilots: Charles Bond, 7 Kill ACE, George Burgard #3 AVG ACE with 10 Kills, 1st Pursuit Squadron Commander Robert Sandell, AVG ACE with 5 Kills Killed in Crash 7 Feb 42, Charles Sawyer, Albert "Red" Probst, John "JJ" Dean, 3 Kills, Eventual CNAC pilot Killed in Crash 11/42.
The scarf is currently framed as shown in the images, but can be shipped unframed to save on shipping charges.
Artifacts that belonged to members of the original Flying Tigers are extremely hard to acquire and rarely come up for sale. Often collectors lucky enough to acquire anything from the AVG will hold onto the pieces for their entire lifetime and families rarely let these artifacts go if they are lucky enough to still possess them. Don't miss this chance to own a true piece of WWII Aviation History.
VINTAGE:
Circa December 25, 1941.
SIZE:
The scarf measures approximately 27" x 27" square.
MATERIALS / CONSTRUCTION:
Silk embroidery on silk.
ATTACHMENT:
N/A.
MARKINGS:
None.
ITEM NOTES:
This is from a collection of Flying Tigers artifacts that we here at Flying Tiger Antiques have been commissioned to sell. We will be listing more over the coming weeks. CON-AVG-18-14 LAIIGEX11/14 SLAEIGEX11/15 S(S)VEJJJX3/17 SL: CON-RLB-VEJJJX03/17-19 LAIIGEX12/19 SAIJJJX12/20
CONDITION:
8+ (Excellent): Scarf shows light aging and minor storage wear.
GUARANTEE: As with all my artifacts, this piece is guaranteed to be original, as described.
