Large Piece of Flag Flown on Horatio Nelson's HMS Victory at Battle of Trafalgar

Description

HORATIO NELSON - H.M.S. VICTORY - BATTLE OF TRAFALGAR
.  Horatio Nelson (1758-1805) was a highly esteemed British admiral best known for his participation in the Napoleonic Wars, during which, in the Battle of Trafalgar, he lost his life.
LARGE PIECE OF THE BRITISH ENSIGN FLAG FLOWN ON HORATIO NELSON’S FLAGSHIP, THE H.M.S. VICTORY, AT THE BATTLE OF TRAFALGAR
Large piece of the British ensign flag flown on Lord Nelson’s flagship, the H.M.S. Victory, at the Battle of Trafalgar.  Accompanied with an early 19th century handwritten note of provenance signed by Edward Taggart Stainbank (1797-1833), master of the merchant ship Mansfield, son of Christopher Stainbank (1773-1860) of Peckham: “Part of the Victory ensign torn to pieces over Nelson’s Grave & presented to my uncle W.H. Lunn by one of the crew of that ship.  E.T. Stainbank.”
ACCOMPANIED WITH AN EARLY 19TH CENTURY HANDWRITTEN NOTE OF PROVENANCE: “PART OF THE VICTORY ENSIGN TORN TO PIECES OVER NELSON’S GRAVE & PRESENTED TO MY UNCLE W.H. LUNN BY ONE OF THE CREW OF THAT SHIP.  E.T. STAINBANK.”
The flag is hand-woven red woollen bunting and measures 4.5 by 3.5 inches.  The inscription is on the front pastedown endpaper of Volume II of Robert Southey’s
The Life of Nelson
(London: John Murray, 1813), contains the armorial bookplate and ownership signature of Stainbank, measures 6.5 by 4 inches, 276 pages, contemporary half calf on marbled boards, and in good condition with rubbing to the boards, the front and back boards, along with the first and last few pages, detached, minor dampstaining on the bottom of the front board and the first few pages, foxing on all the pages, and pages 271 and 272 missing.
THE FLAG WAS INTENDED TO BE PLACED ON NELSON’S COFFIN, BUT WAS TORE INTO NUMEROUS FRAGMENTS AND KEPT AS MEMENTOES BY THE SAILORS AND MARINES WHO FORMED PART OF THE FUNERAL PROCESSION
The St. George’s Ensign and Union Jacks that had flown from the H.M.S. Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar were intended to be folded and placed on Nelson’s coffin at the culmination of his state funeral at St. Paul’s Cathedral on January 9, 1806.  However, the 48 sailors and marines who formed part of the funeral procession tore numerous fragments off the flags and kept them as mementoes.  An identical size ensign sold for ,328 at Bonhams in September 2004 and a larger piece sold for 5,500 at Sotheby’s in January 2018.