Pennant questions, a little O/T
 

When I got this, I was disappointed it didn't have the brightness and whiteness as in the picture under the lights, but not enough to return as I still love it. I assume there's no such thing as dry cleaning old pennants, right? And would anybody like to take a guess as to its age? I'd guess somewhere between the 30s and the 50s, perhaps into the 60s?

On page 81 of the “Hey, pennant guys” thread, there’s a picture of a dry cleaned pennant. I wouldn’t recommend it. That said, a lot of us “pennant guys” have cleaned pennants with good results. It’s a long thread, but there’s lot of good info in there.

Thanks much, Rob, I'll check it out. Any guess on age?

My guess is 100-120 years old. Likely pre-dates silk screening. Very nice!

What’s the size, Hank?

30", with extremely long tassles, if that's any clue. Would the fact that it's all wool (wool on felt?), with no paint, make it a more likely candidate for dry cleaning, or just too old and fragile to take a chance on that? I'd sure hate to screw it up somehow, and it's perfectly acceptable as is.

Wow, I never would have guessed that kind of age. Thanks, Greg.

I've never tried to clean a wool pennant, but, thus far, my experience has been that pennants don't really like being cleaned. Sometimes they come out better after quick/mild cleaning, but they are easy to harm. I'd say that I screw one up for every one that I improve. Usually I only try to clean them if they are really bad.

I wouldn't think of doing anything to this one for fear of damage to the paint.

Sounds like excellent advice. Thanks, Marc.

Sure. I assume that it pre-dated silk screening which was commercialized around 1911. And speaking for myself, I think it looks great. Has a nice natural aged look to it that adds, not detracts, to the pennant.

I don't think either pennant is quite a 120 years old but I think both look fantastic just the way they are and it would be a mistake to try to improve them.

Thanks again, Marc and Rob, I will follow your sage advice. Once again, Net54 comes to the rescue!