In 1969, as a senior at St. Louis Washington University, Ben Zaricor thought about the American flag as much as any other kid whod memorized the Pledge of Allegiance and The Star-Spangled Banner. Which is to say, not all that much. But as the Tennessee native would often recount, Zaricors perception of the flag and its potency as a symbol dramatically changed one afternoon while he ate at a pizzeria near campus. When asked how he came to amass one of the worlds largest and most significant collections of American flags, Zaricor always began with the story of a young man snatched from his seat, taken outside that restaurant and beaten simply for wearing a vest emblazoned with the Stars and Stripes. This led to a small riot in front of the restaurant, with several people, including myself, trying to help the young man, Zaricor once said during an interview with the Smithsonians National Portrait Gallery. We were then attacked by a total of 15 men. Guns were shown by the attackers, and a full-scale riot was averted by the arrival of the police. That experience gave me pause about the power of symbols. I was intrigued by a symbol that people would not only die for but would also kill for. From there, I began collecting flags, in part out of curiosity and in part as a form of protest of what happened to the young man. The first two flags in his collection were Canadian, then came the American flags and associated artifacts, their number escalating into the dozens, then the hundreds, then the thousands, nearly 4,000, all told. Among their ranks are some of the earliest flags flown in the fledgling union, flags that accompanied presidents in motorcades and astronauts to the moon, flags made to represent milestone moments in the nations history. In time, they would come to be known as the Zaricor Flag Collection, which collectively tell the American story, as the Robb Report noted in 2014. Thirty-two flags from the vaunted, oft-displayed Zaricor Flag Collection are available in Heritages latest Americana and Political Signature Auction, which takes place Monday and Tuesday, Nov. 13 and 14. Each is what Zaricor, who founded the Good Earth Tea Company and died last year at 74, liked to call a silent witness to history, and all come with lengthy exhibition and publication histories. That includes one of the most significant flags Heritage has ever offered: a 13-star U.S. flag with the four-five-four star pattern, coveted among collectors as few flags from the Unions earliest days survive and only a small handful reside in private collections. What makes this heavy cotton flag even more significant is its provenance: It hails from the Old Sandy Point Lighthouse in New York, dates to the early 1790s, and was flown under the authority of the Department of Treasurys Lighthouse Establishment, among the federal governments first agencies. Just as scarce is the John F. Kennedy presidential automobile flag with presidential arms, which Zaricor acquired from the collection of David Powers, a close friend of Kennedys who served as his special assistant and, later, as curator of the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum. This embroidered Bemberg flag is among the few presidential automobile flags documented to the Kennedy administration and is believed to have been the flag used during the Fort Worth portion of Kennedys trip to Texas in November 1963. Zaricor believed the flags that adorned Kennedys limousines represented his openness as president, his desire to seem accessible to the American public. According to flags scholar and author Dr. Whitney Smith Jr., they were the hallmarks of a man who wanted to be seen, get out, shake hands. They were more than mere testaments to tragedy. The expanse of the Zaricor Flag Collection is on full display even among this relatively small selection of offerings. Here, for instance, is the 34-star flag from the 1860s, otherwise known as the Snowflakes Flag, which, like so many flags from the collection, spent decades being exhibited across the country, including, twice, in the World Trade Center and on the cover of Time on July 7, 1980, for its Rediscovering America issue. This 69-by-113-inch wool flag looks like none other with its five clusters of six stars each and the single stars along the edge of the canton. Its interpretations are myriad; its origin a relative mystery, save for the fact it was in the possession of one of this countrys first and finest flag collectors and remains, as the catalog notes, one of the most interesting 34-star flags in existence from the tumultuous period of the American Civil War. Each offering in this historic auction, which Zaricor Flag Collection curator James Ferrigan likes to say overflows with old friends, offers a tomes worth of tales, from the 7-star Confederate 1st National Camp Flag that was once part of The Flag House & Star-Spangled Banner Museums collection to the Republic of Hawaii flag from the late 1800s that flew over the consul general in Chicago to the green-striped Ecology flag made by the Paramount Flag Company in the late 1960s. There is a narrative woven into the fabric of each flag; these are our few remaining tangible connections to the yesterdays that help define today. For more information, visit www.HA.com.