#82 • USAT Sheridan China & Japan Voyage Memorial Silk Trapunto

Part of TRENCH ART & WWI Memorabilia (live auction by Bannerman Auctions)

High bid $159.00

Status: Sold

Category: United States

USAT Sheridan China & Japan Voyage Memorial Silk Trapunto. 17" x 21" framed dimensions; on faded black silk with elaborate silk and metallic thread embroidery creating a circle of flags representing the places visited (or in many cases their colonial administrator!) including China (c.1889-1911), Austria-Hungary, Great Britain, Hawaii, Italy, Spain, the Philippines, Japan, etc.  Oval vignette depicts the US Army Transport Sheridan (formerly the steamship Massachusetts).  RPPC image sealed in the center depicts a US Commissary Corps NCO in his c.1902 khaki uniform, posing with his wife, children, and pet cat.   Massachusetts was purchased for service in 1898, and was used to carry troops and supplies between the US, Cuba, and Puerto Rico.  Renamed after Sheridan after the war, she served in the Pacific, running troops and supplies to US bases in Hawaii, Guam, and the Philippines.  She was utilized during the Philippine Insurrection, the 1911 Revolution in China, and carried troops for service in the Siberian Expeditionary Force.  She last sailed for Uncle Sam in March 1921, and was sold for scrap in 1923. The silk is faded and stained, and is now permanently adhered to old mat board, so condition is not the best on this one, though the bullion and embroidery remains just fine, and the subject matter (being something other than a warship) is interesting and not as commonly encountered.  Estimate: $100 - $150