The flag of the Republic of San Marino is made up of horizontal stripes, a white top and a bottom in blue. At the center is represented the official emblem, a shield surmounted by a closed crown, a symbol of sovereignty.
The shield, in which are depicted the three towers symbol of San Marino, is decorated with two branches, one of laurel and one of oak with golden fruits and joined at the bottom by a silver ribbon bearing the motto Libertas.
The civil flag that is exposed by the various “Case di Castello” has the same proportions (3:4), the civic coat of arms in place of the national one in central position and the blue-white horizontal stripes.
The official coat of arms of the Republic of San Marino is surmounted by a crown closed, the symbol of sovereignty. The shield has a blue field, three green hills, the silver towers, windowed and distinct in black, with battlements, pricked out of silver ostrich feathers.
The shield is decorated with two green branches, one of a laurel and one of oak with golden fruit.
On the silver ribbon the motto Libertas in capital letters in black.
The Republic’s 9 municipalities also have their own Coat of Arms, which you can find described on the page dedicated to the Castelli di San Marino and which goes to make up the flag of each individual Castle.
History of the San Marino flag
Traces of the history of the San Marino flag are few and there are not many documents that reconstruct its birth. It is mentioned in some documents from the 16th century but no description is given.
Several historians have tried to reconstruct the origin of the white and blue colors.
Initially, in fact, italian historian Carlo Malagola in the late 1800s identified a composition different from the current one, with vertical bands of the colors white, yellow and alexandrine, which is interpreted as a violet.
This reconstruction is found in Emilio Retrosi’s 1894 fresco placed in the Great and General Council Chamber.
Later a reconstruction by historian Verter Casali based on studies of Renaissance textiles identifies the removal of the yellow band to distinguish it from the papal insignia.
In 1979 the Great and General Council adopted a white and blue cockade, similar to the current colors but with a darker blue.
In 1862 the design of the official Coat of Arms of San Marino was officially established.
It is necessary to reach 2011 to have a law that definitively establishes the shape and color of the Republic’s official flag and its format.
