Museum Collections
Decorative Arts
FDR
Title
FDR
Object name
Campaign kerchief
Date
1940
Medium
Rayon
Dimensions
Overall: 22 1/8 x 21 1/4 in. ( 56.2 x 54 cm )
Description
Red, white and blue cotton campaign kerchief with stars in corners and stripes running diagonally at center; "***ROOSEVELT***" printed four times in blue within white stripes.
Credit Line
Purchase
Object Number
2004.13
Marks
Stamp: near inner border, twice: "Mastai Collection"
Inscription: in ink: "No. 308"
Gallery Label
This kerchief was used during the 1940 presidential campaign of Franklin D. Roosevelt. He was elected to a third term, defeating his Republican opponent Wendell Willkie. Before its acquisition by the Historical Society, the kerchief was part of the nearly encyclopedic collection of American flags formed by Boleslaw and Marie-Louise d'Otrange Mastai of New York beginning in the 1940s. The collection was broken up and sold in 2002.
Provenance
The Mastai Collection; With Early American History Auctions, Rancho Santa Fe, CA (Sale Feb 14 2004, lot #1233)
Due to ongoing research, information about this object is subject to change.





