Arba the eagle is a large rod and hand puppet made by the Patchwork Puppet Productions, an Emmy award winning company, in 1975. The eagle is made of wool felt, with red, blue, and gray feathers with a white head and a yellow beak and claws. His basic form is made of foam, wire and cardboard. The head, his mouth, and one wing are manipulated by one hand and arm, while the other wing is manipulated with an attached rod.
Arba was commissioned by the U.S. Bicentennial Commission to perform public television announcements celebrating the Bicentennial on July 4, 1976. He also appeared in a series of public service announcements in the mid 1970s.
After four years at the puppet theater at the Smithsonian Institution, puppeteers Ingrid Crepeau, Sarah Toth Yochum, and Julian Lochum formed their own company in 1974 and created the Washington D.C. Patchwork Puppet Productions Inc. Their life size puppets were a vital part of the highly acclaimed television series "Sneakers". They also performed musical shows, political satire, and educational films.