Commemorative American Soldier Silk Work Panel. Words at top: "In Memory of My Cruise China Japan and Philippine Islands." Depicts Oriental imagery and American styles and patterns with a photograph imbedded lower center. Overall size: 31 X 24 1/4 in. Sight size: 27 1/4 X 20 1/2 in. #1493 . This very personal piece of military artwork combines a silk woven panel and a photograph of a soldier and his girl. The thirteen stars beneath the words at top signify the original thirteen colonies. The eagle below that is extremely reminiscent of the work of the Japanese painter Ohara Koson (1877-1945), suggesting it was stitched using a model. The stylized Chinese dragon it is clutching is also likely based on a previous pattern, and the use of the eagle, an American icon, as the larger aggressor suggestively signifies a successful campaign in the Asian theater. Between 1898 and 1905, the US Army sent Artillery soldiers with the Navy to the Philippines, Japan and China to help stabilize the region after the Spanish withdrawal and the Boxer Rebellion, as well as the rapid expansion of Japan’s empire. The specific shell coat with Artillery insignia on the cap that this soldier is wearing, along with the period clothing of his girl, would indicate this was taken and made (possibly by the pictured girl) after 1905 but prior to World War I. The older-style cannon in the background, the type of bench, and the visible foliage around them also suggest that it was taken in the continental US, and not overseas. The 42 stars on the surrounding flags are likely simply a stylistic choice, as there was only a 250 day period between 1889 and 1890 when the United States only had 42 states, after the admission of Washington, Montana, and both Dakotas but prior to the addition of Idaho. Location BF