Measuring 595mm by 885mm and bearing the inscription auxilium ab alto – ‘help from on high’ – the flag was deemed such an important piece of British history that the government imposed an ‘export bar’ last September to allow UK museums, galleries or institutions to find time to raise the £120,000 asking price.

With just a fortnight to go before the embargo expires the National Museum of the Royal Navy has stepped forward in a last-ditch attempt to save the flag – and put it on display in Portsmouth.