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The flag of San Marino

The flag of San Marino
Two equal horizontal bands, white over light blue, with the coat of arms — three towers on three peaks, in a wreath, under a crown — at the centre.
Ratio 3:4 · current design adopted 1862

The three towers still stand on the three summits of Monte Titano and are visible from most of the surrounding countryside, so the flag is a literal picture of the skyline. San Marino dates its founding to 301 and describes itself as the oldest surviving sovereign republic, which is what LIBERTAS refers to. The state flag carries the arms; the plain white-and-blue bicolour is the civil version. The ostrich feathers on the towers are a heraldic convention and not a local bird.

What the colours mean

  • White #FFFFFF The snow on Monte Titano, and peace
  • Light blue #5EB6E4 The sky, and liberty

Flag laws usually specify a Pantone chip, a CMYK mix or just a colour name. Converting any of those to sRGB is lossy, which is why published hex values disagree.

The symbols on it

What What it stands for
Three towers Guaita, Cesta and Montale, the fortresses on the three peaks of Monte Titano
LIBERTAS The republic's motto, and its claim to be the world's oldest surviving republic
Ratio
3:4
Current design adopted
1862
Colours
white, light blue

Common questions

What does the flag of San Marino look like?
Two equal horizontal bands, white over light blue, with the coat of arms — three towers on three peaks, in a wreath, under a crown — at the centre.
What do the colours of the San Marino flag mean?
White: the snow on Monte Titano, and peace. Light blue: the sky, and liberty.
When was the San Marino flag adopted?
The current design dates from 1862, and its official ratio is 3:4.

Related pages

Sources

  1. Wikidata — Wikimedia Foundation (CC0 1.0)

How these figures are compiled and checked