Walter Kennedy Flag - c.1719 - Pirate Wax Seal Stamp

Walter Kennedy Flag, Traditional Pirate Emblem - c.1719 - Historical Wax Seal Stamp

Wax seal stamp featuring the flag traditionally associated with Walter Kennedy, an English pirate active during the Golden Age of Piracy.

Walter Kennedy was born in Wapping, London, and originally went to sea in the Royal Navy. He later became involved with the pirate company that included Howell Davis and Bartholomew Roberts, eventually serving aboard Roberts’ vessels during operations in the Atlantic and along the West African coast.

In 1719, while Roberts was temporarily absent, Kennedy and part of the crew sailed away with the Rover and a captured vessel. Kennedy was subsequently chosen as captain by the departing crew. Their intention soon turned towards returning home rather than continuing their previous activities, although poor navigation famously brought them to the coast of Scotland when they had intended to reach Ireland.

The flag traditionally attributed to Walter Kennedy is one of the more elaborate designs associated with Golden Age piracy. It is usually shown on a black field, with a skull and crossed bones on one side and a standing figure holding an hourglass and a sabre on the other.

There is, however, an important historical qualification to this attribution. No contemporary evidence has yet been identified showing Walter Kennedy using this particular flag. A very similar design is documented for the French pirate Jean Thomas Dulaien, while another period description refers to a separate pirate known simply as Captain Kennedy. Over time, these designs appear to have become associated with Walter Kennedy in modern collections of pirate flags.

The design reproduced here should therefore be regarded as the traditional Walter Kennedy emblem rather than a securely documented reconstruction of a flag personally flown by him.

Kennedy remains an interesting figure because contemporary accounts preserve unusually detailed information about his experiences aboard pirate vessels. An early account attributed to Kennedy describes how crews selected their own captain and deliberately limited the amount of authority held by any one individual.

Design: Traditional Walter Kennedy flag
Person: Walter Kennedy
Date: c.1719
Period: Golden Age of Piracy
Association: Rover / Bartholomew Roberts
Source Basis: Traditional later 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.

“They had the choice in themselves.” — Walter Kennedy