Henry Avery Flag - c.1695 - Pirate Wax Seal Stamp

Henry Avery Flag, Traditional Pirate Emblem - c.1695 - Historical Wax Seal Stamp

Wax seal stamp featuring the distinctive pirate emblem traditionally associated with Henry Every, also frequently known as Henry Avery, one of the most famous maritime figures of the late 17th century.

Henry Every was an English sailor who became captain of the Fancy in 1694 after the crew of the Charles II took control of their vessel during a voyage connected with the Spanish Expedition. Contemporary documents generally record his surname as Every, although Avery and Evarie also appear in historical sources.

Every subsequently sailed through the Atlantic and around southern Africa into the Indian Ocean. In 1695 his crew captured the Mughal vessel Ganj-i-Sawai, an exceptionally wealthy ship travelling from the Red Sea towards India. The event brought Every international notoriety and led to an extensive search for both him and members of his company.

Unlike many prominent pirates of the following generation, Every disappeared from reliable historical records after 1696. His uncertain fate helped turn him into a legendary figure, and fictional accounts of his adventures began appearing within only a few years.

The flag traditionally associated with Henry Every features a white skull shown in profile, usually wearing a kerchief and earring, positioned above two crossed bones on a black field. A red-field version of the same emblem is also frequently reproduced.

There is, however, no reliable contemporary evidence that Every personally used this design.

A General History of the Pyrates, published in 1724, attributed to Every a much simpler black flag displaying two crossed bones. Another early source, the ballad A Copy of Verses, describes a red “shield” bearing four gold chevrons with a green border, although it is uncertain whether this passage was intended to describe a flag at all.

The familiar profile-skull design reproduced here is considerably later. Its specific attribution to Henry Every appears to originate with Hans Leip’s Bordbuch des Satans, published in 1959. It should therefore be regarded as the traditional Henry Every emblem established in modern pirate imagery rather than an eyewitness reconstruction of colours flown during his lifetime.

This distinction makes Every particularly interesting: several different flag designs have become associated with him, reflecting how quickly the historical captain became mixed with later pirate legend.

Design: Profile skull with crossed bones
Traditional Association: Henry Every / Henry Avery
Date: c.1695 era
Period: Late 17th-century piracy
Vessel: Fancy
Source Basis: Later traditional attribution
Stamp Size: 30 mm
Material: Solid brass
Type: Wax seal stamp / sealing stamp

Each stamp is made of solid brass, supplied with a handle, and presented in a velvet pouch.

Suitable for letters, envelopes, maritime collections, historical displays, nautical-themed stationery, pirate collections and decorative sealing.

“I have never as yet wronged any English or Dutch, nor never intend while I am commander.” — Henry Every, 1695