Georgia

Sakartvelo

Last modified: 2002-06-14 by ivan sache
Keywords: georgia | europe | caucasus | commonwealth of independent states | sakartvelo | law | construction sheet |
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by Zeljko Heimer

Flag used between 1918 and 1921 (with different proportion) and readopted14 November 1990 , coat of arms adopted 11 December 1990.
Proportion: 3:5
Description: Dark red flag with two horizontal black over white stripes in canton.
Use: on land, civil and State flag, at sea, civil and State ensign.

Colour approximate specifications (as given in Album des Pavillons [pay00]):

• Red: Pantone 209 c / CMYK (%) C 0 - M85 - Y 35 - K 50

On this page:

• Presentation of Georgia
• Law on flag and construction sheet
• The red shade of the flag

See also:

• Georgia: Index of all related pages

Presentation of Georgia

Full name: Republic of Georgia.
Location: Caucasus.
Status: Internationally recognized independent state since 9 April 1991.
Notes: The national flag came into use when Georgia proclaimed its independence in 1917 and was resurrected upon the breakup of the Soviet Union. The dark red colour is regarded as the national colour. The black and white stripes stand for the country's tragic past and hopes for the future.

Stuart Notholt, 28 May 1995

Law on flag and construction sheet

by Zeljko Heimer

My source is Jiri Tenora, who wrote (in French):

"Geometry of the flag is: An invisible cross divides the field in 4 quarters which are as a consequency smaller than normal quarters."

by Zeljko Heimer

He attached a drawing similar to my drawing in Album des Pavillons.

Armand du Payrat, 9 October 2001

by Zeljko Heimer

The web page of the National Parliament of Georgia includes all Georgian laws, and also the Law of Georgia on state flag of anthem (14 November 1990) can be found (in Georgian only).

by Zeljko Heimer

However, the construction sheet clearly shows that the flag ratio is 3:5 and that the canton reaches 2/5 of both length and width of the flag (i.e. vertically canton:field = 2:3, horizontally black:white:red = 1:1:3).

Jan Zrzavy, 3 August 2000

The red shade of the flag

• Encyclopaedia Universalis Yearbook [eun] says rouge cornaline, that is "cornelian red". Cornelian is a red agate used in jewelry and lapidary arts.
• Dorling-Kindersley Flag Book [udk97] says "deep red", and a few lines after, "crimson". It mentions a "semantic drift" in the interpretation of this national colour, symbolizing in 1918 Georgia's bright past and nowadays also joy.
• Talocci (French edition [tal93]), as reliable as usual, shows a flag with a bright red field, and says "red", adding that the new design is probably inspired by the flag of "the former national monarchy". Some of these putative flags are shown here, and I would agree that the colours of the present flag are those of the former feudal states, but certainly not its design, which was created in 1917. A St. George's cross would be expected if Talocci's interpretation were to be correct.
• Znamierowski [zna99] states "dogwood red".
• Devereux [dev98] has "cherry red".
• In the Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant of 31 December 1991 it is kersenrood or "cherry red" as well, a different cherry color of course!

Ivan Sache & Jarig Bakker, 23 July 2000