As to your questions:

>>>>(1) I understand that a few battle flags may have had battle honors added in the field, however, I understand that for most flags the battle honors were placed on the flags before they left Richmond and issued to the individual regiments. My question is were these hand painted or stenciled in Richmond, or both. >>>

They were not stenciled from what I have seen, but hand painted. Those with the dark blue letters were done by Richmond sign painter Lewis Montague. Those done for earlier flags on white cotton strips, etc., we have not pinned down the painter as yet. Only three divisions got flags with the dark blue honors (and later a couple other brigades).

>>>(2) ANV battle flags have what appears to be two horizontal seams in the body of the flag; one near the top and one near the bottom. Are these seams from sewing different sections of bunting together to make one large field or are they added simply to reinforce the flag body from wind damage.>>>

There were three pieces of red wool bunting that made the field; two were 18 inches wide (the typical bolt width) and the other 12 inches wide (in 1862) and 9 inches wide in 1863. The narrower strip was typically in the center of the flag. These were sewn slightly over each other in what is called a flat fell seam. The whole flag was pretty much done this way.

Greg Biggs