Flag Research Quarterly, September 2017, No. 14
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FLAG RESEARCH QUARTERLY REVUE TRIMESTRIELLE DE RECHERCHE EN VEXILLOLOGIE SEPTEMBER / SEPTEMBRE 2017 No. 14 A research publication of the North American The Aztec Heritage of Vexillological Association-Une publication de recherche de l‘Association nord-américaine de vexillologie the Mexican Flag By John M. Hartvigsen Right: Current flag of Mexico. Source: The Mexican flag is not only recognizable and effec- http://encircleworldphotos.photoshelter.com/image/ tive, but it is also beautiful and beloved. In 2008, 20 I0000ERYcGfnhpag Minutos, a free Spanish language newspaper, ran a Background watermark: Golden-linear version survey contest to pick the “most beautiful flag in the of coat of arms of Mexico, adopted 1968. world.” Although the publication is based in Spain, the contest was picked up Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coat_of_arms_of_ Mexico#/media/File:Coat_of_arms_of_Mexico_(golden_ by other publications in Latin America. One of a series of “best-of surveys,” the linear).svg contest asked readers to rate the flags of 140 nations. Although this was a self- selecting sample and not a scientific survey, it was an interesting outgrowth of the phenomenon of flags. The contest attracted 1,920,000 entry ballots, which was three times the number of participant entries that are normally attracted by similar “best-of contests.” The article’s title announced the results dramati- cally: “Mexico sweeps the most beautiful flag in the world list.” Mexico’s flag received 901,607 points, or 47% of the vote.1 This, of course, does not prove that the Mexican flag is actually the most beautiful flag in the world, but this and extensive anecdotal evidence demonstrates that the flag “works” and is a beloved banner. Another indication of the esteem in which Mexicans hold their flag has been the erection of “monumental” Mexican flags (banderas monumentales) in the capital city, regional metropolises, and at important locales on the border of the United States, including Tijuana and Ciudad Juarez. These flags, with dimensions of 14.3 meters by 25 meters (47 by 82 feet), are flown on 50-meter INSIDE / SOMMAIRE Page (164-foot) flagpoles and are visible for great distances (figure 1).2 The decree Editor’s Note / Note de la rédaction 2 authorizing the construction of the monumental flags gives some insight into the The Flags of Courland 10 pride that Mexican citizens take in their flag: “The National Coat of Arms, Flag From Flying Flags to Museum Flags: A Case and Anthem are the Patriotic Symbols of the United Mexican States and repre- Study in Using Minimally Invasive Preservation Techniques to Allow Maximum Flexibility in sent our identity and culture, as well as the superior principles of our Nation;… Display and Interpretation 13 it is the duty of the authorities of the three levels of government, to make every effort to renew and promote the veneration of the Patriotic Symbols, for which reason they should promote and encourage the practice of honoring them in all parts of the national territory.”3 continued on page 3 SEPTEMBER / SEPTEMBRE 2017 | No. 14 Page 2 Editor’s Note / Note de la rédaction FLAG RESEARCH QUARTERLY / REVUE TRIMESTRIELLE DE RECHERCHE EN 2017 is a year of remarkable anniversaries. When I had the privilege of attending the VEXILLOLOGIE NO. 14 annual meeting of the Organization of American Historians this spring, much of the 2017 discussion revolved around the centennial of the entrance of the United States into September / Septembre 2017 Vol. 5, Issue 3 / fascicule 3 the First World War, which changed so much about American society—including a ISSN 2334-4407 (print) renewed interest in flying the Stars and Stripes. Overseas, thousands of Canadians ISSN 2474-1884 (online) and Britons gathered in France this year to remember the great battles of Vimy A research publication of the North American Vexillological Association-Une publication de Ridge and Passchendaele, in which so many soldiers fought for King and Country recherche de l’Association nord-américaine under the flags of the Empire. And, while the people of Russia are doing little to de vexillologie. Published quarterly / Publié quatre fois par an. commemorate them, both the February Revolution and the October Revolution, Please submit correspondence and with its abundance of red flags, happened a century ago. submissions to / Veuillez envoyer toute correspondance à l’adresse suivante: Flag It has garnered less attention, but this year marks a significant anniversary in Mexico Research Quarterly, Post Office Box 55071 #58049, Boston, Mass. 02205-5071 USA; as well, for it was 100 years ago that the current Mexican Constitution was adopted. [email protected] After a period of civil war, the constitution enshrined the “Social Pact” that called EDITORS / RÉDACTEURS for workers’ rights, a separation of church and state, and limited terms for presi- Kenneth J. Hartvigsen, Ph.D. dents. In the years afterward, the Mexican people embraced their pre-Cortesian Steven A. Knowlton, M.L.I.S., M.A. heritage in fields including the arts and architecture—which, naturally, influenced EDITORIAL BOARD / COMITÉ DE RÉDACTION the design of the Mexican flag. Edward A. McNabb, LL.B. Chair / Directeur In this issue, we are pleased to present a paper by John Hartvigsen which addresses John A. Lowe, M.D., FF “The Aztec Heritage of the Mexican Flag.” In the tradition of vexillology as a social David B. Martucci science, the author examines the context in which the intriguing pattern of the John M. Hartvigsen (ex officio) Mexican National Arms came to include glyphs of Aztec origin at a time when PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE / Mexico was searching for means to express its unique culture and history on the COMITÉ DE PUBLICATION Edward A. McNabb, LL.B. world stage. It appears to be the first English-language piece to address this impor- Chair / Directeur tant aspect of the Mexican flag’s design. Luc V. Baronian, Ph.D. Kenneth J. Hartvigsen, Ph.D. We are also pleased to present Wim Schuurman’s paper on “The Flags of Courland,” Anne M. Platoff, M.S., M.A., FF bringing to our attention the vexillological tradition of a duchy little remembered John M. Hartvigsen (ex officio) outside of Eastern Europe. Finally, Catarina Florio presents a remarkable case study North American Vexillological Association- Association nord-américaine de vexillologie from her work at the Canadian Museum of History in “From Flying Flag to Museum Founded / Fondée en 1967 Flag.” The innovative preservation and mounting techniques she discusses may John M. Hartvigsen serve as instructive examples to others facing similar issues with older flags. President / Président Luc V. Baronian, Ph.D. This is the last issue of Flag Research Quarterly that will be published before the First Vice President / Premier vice-président Association meets again in Boston. For those of you who will be in attendance, I Edward A. McNabb, LL.B. Second Vice President / Second vice-président look forward to seeing you and hearing your thoughts about this publication. For Lee L. Herold those unable to join us, I welcome all comments, criticism, and especially contribu- Secretary / Secrétaire tions! Please contact me at [email protected]. John S. Adcock, J.D., CPA Treasurer / Trésorier Steven A. Knowlton © 2017 North American Vexillological Association- Association nord-américaine de vexillologie. All rights Co-editor, FRQ reserved / Tous droits réservés. All images used by permission / Toutes les images sont utilisées avec autorisation. The opinions expressed by individual articles in this publication belong to their authors and CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE. John M. Hartvigsen is President of NAVA and twice a Driver do not necessarily represent those of the editor or the Award winner. Catarina Florio is Textile Conservator at the Canadian Museum of History. Wim Association / Les opinions exprimées dans la présente Schuurman is past secretary of the Nederlandse Vereniging voor Vlaggenkunde (Dutch Association publication n’engagent que leurs auteurs et ne sont pas for Vexillology) and former publisher of Vexilla Nostra. nécessairement celles de l’éditeur ou de l’Association. A research publication of the FLAG RESEARCH QUARTERLY / SEPTEMBER / SEPTEMBRE 2017 | No. 14 North American Vexillological Association / REVUE TRIMESTRIELLE DE RECHERCHE Page 3 Une publication de recherche de EN VEXILLOLOGIE l’Association nord-américaine de vexillologie Hartvigsen: The Aztec Heritage of the Mexican Flag continued from page 1 and instructed them to settle where they would see an eagle perched on a cactus growing from a rock. The eagle would be seen holding a snake in its beak and talon. The Aztecs wandered for two hundred years searching for the sign, and finally settled where they saw the foretold sign, founding a city they named Tenochtitlan, usually interpreted as the “place of the wild prickly pear cactus” (figure 2).4 The ruins of Tenochtitlan lie beneath modern Mexico City. Whitney Smith noted that the story is illustrated in many pictorial versions: Repeated endlessly in diverse forms, the eagle and snake and cactus motif of Mexico is a six-hundred-year-old symbol that continually provides fresh inspiration to new generations.5 Figure 1: Raising the Bandera monumental of Tijuana. Source: Wikipedia, The Aztec symbol of the eagle and the snake was initially https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banderas_monumentales_de_M%C3%A9xico suppressed by Spanish authorities in the first centuries of colonization, but by the seventeenth century it was in use not Despite the visibility of the Mexican flag within its country only by descendants of the Aztecs but also by criollo (Mexican- and to its neighbors, in the English-speaking world there are born descendants of Spanish colonists) and mestizo (descen- elements of the flag’s design that are not well-known, yet dants of Spanish colonists and native Americans) groups, to which are important parts of the flag’s meaning and impor- distinguish themselves from Spanish-born bureaucrats and tance to citizens of Mexico.