80-538: The Gadsden flag is a historical American flag with a yellow field depicting a timber rattlesnake coiled and ready to strike. Beneath the rattlesnake are the words Dont Tread on Me . Some modern versions of the flag include an apostrophe. The flag is named after Christopher Gadsden , a South Carolinian delegate to the Continental Congress and brigadier general in the Continental Army , who designed
160-492: A 2001 survey by the North American Vexillological Association , New Mexico has the best-designed flag of any U.S. state, U.S. territory, or Canadian province , while Georgia's state flag was rated the worst design. (Georgia adopted a new flag in 2003; Nebraska's state flag, whose design was rated second worst, remains in use to date.) Dates in parentheses denote when the current flag was adopted by
240-747: A British griffin . In December 1775, Benjamin Franklin published an essay in the Pennsylvania Journal under the pseudonym "American Guesser" in which he suggested that the rattlesnake was a good symbol for the American spirit and its valuation for vigilance, assertiveness, individualism, unity, and liberty: [...] there was painted a Rattle-Snake, with this modest motto under it, "Don't tread on me." [...] she has no eye-lids. She may therefore be esteemed an emblem of vigilance. She never begins an attack, nor, when once engaged, ever surrenders [...] The Rattle-Snake
320-410: A Gadsden flag patch. After high-profile backlash against the decision, including criticism from Governor Jared Polis, the school reversed its decision. Street Patrol, a 1990s queer self-defense group affiliated with Queer Nation/San Francisco , used as its logo a coiled snake over a triangle holding a ribbon with the motto "Don't Tread on Me". Some libertarian circles use a version of the flag with
400-602: A Texas rally carrying a version of the flag with the snake in the shape of a human uterus . This design was created by Anne Lesniak. The Gadsden flag has also been used by groups and individuals on the right. The Gadsden flag was featured prominently in a report related to the January 6, 2021, attack of the United States Capitol . Beginning in 2009, the Gadsden flag was widely used as a protest symbol by protesters who supported
480-435: A coiled rattlesnake with thirteen rattles along with the motto " Don't Tread on Me ." This is the first recorded mention of the flag's symbolism. Gadsden decided that the American navy needed a distinctive flag and took it upon himself to make one in 1775. He gave Commodore Esek Hopkins a yellow rattlesnake flag to serve as his personal standard on USS Alfred , the flagship of America's first navy squadron. Gadsden intended
560-481: A red chest and white wings". Aelian was the last source on the griffin to add fresh information on the griffin, and late writers (into medieval times) merely rehashed existing material on griffins, with the exception of the lore about their "agate eggs" which emerged at some indistinct time later on (cf. infra). The griffin has been associated with various deities (Apollo, Dionysus, Nemesis), in Greek mythography but here,
640-413: A region of very rich soil but quite uninhabitable because griffins, a savage and tenacious breed of wild beasts, love.. the gold that is mined from deep within the earth there, and because they guard it with an amazing hostility to those who set foot there. The aforementioned Aelian ( Claudius Aelianus , d. 235 AD) added certain other embellishments, such as its reputation of "black plumage on its back with
720-527: A ship from Georgia entered Boston Harbor flying a version of the Gadsden Flag with 15 stars on it signifying the 15 slave states. The captain removed the flag after a large and angry crowd gathered, who then destroyed it. For historical reasons, the Gadsden flag is still popularly flown in Charleston, South Carolina, the city where Christopher Gadsden first presented the flag and where it was commonly used during
800-599: A source of criticism from vexillologists . The most recent current state flag is that of Minnesota (May 11, 2024), while the most recent current territorial flag is that of the Northern Mariana Islands (July 1, 1985). Modern U.S. state flags date from the 1890s, when states wanted to have distinctive symbols at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago , Illinois . Most U.S. state flags were designed and adopted between 1893 and World War I . According to
880-472: A woodcut of a snake cut into eight sections. It represented the colonies, with New England joined as the head and South Carolina as the tail, following their order along the coast. This was the first political cartoon published in an American newspaper. In 1774, Paul Revere added Franklin's iconic cartoon to the nameplate of Isaiah Thomas 's paper, the Massachusetts Spy , depicted there as fighting
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#1732851520734960-678: Is a congressionally chartered , federally supported non-profit corporation that serves as the official civilian auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force. It has quasi-military organizational and rank structures modeled on those of the Air Force. [REDACTED] Flag of the Department of the Interior [REDACTED] Flag of the Secretary of the Interior [REDACTED] Flag of the Deputy Secretary of
1040-749: Is a legendary creature with the body, tail, and back legs of a lion , and the head and wings of an eagle with its talons on the front legs. Because the lion was traditionally considered the king of the beasts, and the eagle the king of the birds, by the Middle Ages, the griffin was thought to be an especially powerful and majestic creature. Since classical antiquity, griffins were known for guarding treasures and priceless possessions. In Greek and Roman texts, griffins and Arimaspians were associated with gold deposits of Central Asia. The earliest classical writings derive from Aristeas (7th cent. BC), preserved by Herodotus and Aeschylus (mid 5th century BC), but
1120-522: Is described as having a " visor " (i.e., beaks) made by Urartian craftsmen, similar to what is found on Greek protomes. Representations of griffin-like hybrids with four legs and a beaked head appeared in Ancient Egyptian art dating back to before 3000 BC. The oldest known depiction of a griffin-like animal in Egypt appears as a relief carving on slate on the cosmetic palette from Hierakonpolis ,
1200-459: Is not uniquely applied to the griffin beast, and tštš ( Teš-teš ) has also been used to denote the god Osiris elsewhere. Most statuary representations of griffins depict them with bird-like forelegs and talons , although in some older illustrations griffins have a lion's forelegs (see bronze figure, right); they generally have a lion's hindquarters. Its eagle's head is conventionally given prominent ears ; these are sometimes described as
1280-441: Is solitary, and associates with her kind only when it is necessary for their preservation [...] 'Tis curious and amazing to observe how distinct and independent of each other the rattles of this animal are, and yet how firmly they are united together, so as never to be separated but by breaking them to pieces. [...] The power of fascination attributed to her, by a generous construction, may be understood to mean, that those who consider
1360-604: Is that these derive from the bumps (furrows) on a lion's snout. Another view regards the wart as deriving from the bumpy cockscomb on a rooster or other such fowls. Griffin-like animals were depicted on cylinder seals in Mesopotamia c. 3000 BC, perhaps as early as the Uruk period (4000–3100BC) and subsequent Proto-Elamite ( Jemdet Nasr ) period. An example of a winged lion with beaks, unearthed in Susa (cf. fig. right ) dates to
1440-537: The Achaemenian Persian Empire . Russian jewelry historian Elena Neva maintained that the Achaemenids considered the griffin "a protector from evil, witchcraft, and secret slander", but no writings exist from Achaemenid Persia to support her claim. R.L. Fox (1973) remarks that a "lion-griffin" attacks a stag in a pebble mosaic at Pella , from the 4th century BC, perhaps serving as an emblem of
1520-788: The Culpeper Minutemen flag, among others. In the 21st century, the Gadsden Flag has been used by supporters of the Tea Party movement . George Washington established the Continental Navy in 1775 as Commander in Chief of the Continental Forces, before Esek Hopkins was named Commodore of the Navy. The first ships were used to intercept incoming transport ships carrying war supplies to the British in
1600-503: The Lamassu , an Assyrian protective deity, often depicted with a bull or lion's body, eagle's wings, and human's head. Sumerian and Akkadian mythology feature the demon Anzu , half man and half bird, associated with the chief sky god Enlil . This was a divine storm-bird linked with the southern wind and the thunder clouds. Jewish mythology speaks of the Ziz , which resembles Anzu, as well as
1680-880: The Two Dog Palette dated to the Early Dynastic Period , c. 3300–3100 BC. Griffin-type creatures combining raptor heads and mammalian bodies were depicted in the Levant , Syria , and Anatolia during the Middle Bronze Age , dated at about 1950–1550 BC. Griffin-type animals appeared in the art of ancient Crete in the MM III Period (1650–1600 BC) in Minoan chronology , found on sealings from Zakro and miniature frescos dated to this period. One early example of griffin-types in Minoan art occurs in
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#17328515207341760-582: The "curled tresses" that are the signature of Uratrian workmanship. Even the ornate crests on Minoan griffins (such as the fresco of the Throne Room, figure top of page) may be a development of these curled tresses. One prominent characteristic of the cauldron griffins is the "top-knob between the brows" (seemingly situated at the top of the head ). The top-knob feature has clear oriental origins. Jack Leonard Benson says these appendages were "topknots" subsequently rendered as "knobs" in later development of
1840-580: The "most popular symbol of the American Revolution." Its design proclaims an assertive warning of vigilance and willingness to act in defense against coercion. This has led it to be associated with the ideas of individualism and liberty . It is often used in the United States as a symbol of right-libertarianism , classical liberalism , and small government , as well as for distrust or defiance against authorities and government. Many variations of
1920-571: The 15th century BC frescoes of the Throne Room of the Bronze Age Palace of Knossos , as restored by Sir Arthur Evans . The griffin-like hybrid became a fixture of Aegean culture since the Late Bronze Age , but the animal called the gryps, gryphon, or griffin in Greek writings did not appear in Greek art until about 700 BC, or rather, it was "rediscovered" as artistic motif in
2000-470: The 1970s, libertarians began using the Gadsden flag as a symbol to represent individual rights and limited government. The flag's prominent yellow or gold color is also strongly associated with libertarianism. The libertarian Free State Project in New Hampshire uses a modified version of the flag with the snake replaced by a porcupine, a symbol of the libertarian movement. Other libertarian variants of
2080-699: The 4th millennium B.C., and is a unique example of a griffin-like animal with a male lion's mane . However, this monster then ceased to continue to be expressed after the Elamite culture. What the Sumerians of the Early Dynastic period portrayed instead were winged lions, and the lion-headed eagle ( Imdugud ). In the Akkadian Empire that succeeded Sumer, early examples (from early 3rd millennium BC ) of lions with bird heads appeared on cylinder seals, shown pulling
2160-609: The 8th to 7th centuries BC, adapting the style of griffin current in Neo-Hittite art. It became quite popular in the 6th and 5th centuries BC, when the Greeks first began to record accounts of the "gryps" creature from travelers to Asia, such as Aristeas of Proconnesus. A number of bronze griffin protomes on cauldrons have been unearthed in Greece (on Samos , and at Olympia , etc., cf. fig. right). Early Greek and early Etruscan (e.g.
2240-482: The American Tea Party movement . It was also displayed by members of Congress at Tea Party rallies. In some cases, the flag was ruled to be a political, rather than a historic or military, symbol due to the strong Tea Party connection. In 2014, the flag was used by Jerad and Amanda Miller, the perpetrators of the 2014 Las Vegas shootings who killed two police officers and a citizen. The Millers reportedly placed
2320-526: The Barberini) examples of cauldron-griffins may have been of Syric-Urartian make, based on evidence (the "tendrils" or "tresses" motif was already touched upon, above), but "Vannic (Urartian) originals" have yet to be found (in the Orient). It has thus been controversially argued (by Ulf Jantzen [ de ] ) that these attachments had always since the earliest times been crafted by Greek workshops, added to
2400-713: The Congress William Henry Drayton . Gadsden's presentation of the rattlesnake flag was recorded in the South Carolina congressional journals on February 9, 1776: Col. Gadsden presented to the Congress an elegant standard, such as is to be used by the commander in chief of the American Navy; being a yellow field, with a lively representation of a rattlesnake in the middle in the attitude of going to strike and these words underneath, " Don't tread on me ." In 1861,
2480-525: The Gadsden Flag on the corpse of one of the officers they killed. In March 2013, the Gadsden flag was raised at a vacant armory building in New Rochelle, New York , without permission from city officials. The city ordered its removal and the United Veterans Memorial & Patriotic Association, which had maintained the U.S. flag at the armory, filed suit against the city. A federal judge dismissed
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2560-444: The Gadsden flag exist. The motto may or may not include an apostrophe in the word "Don't"; the typeface used for the motto may or may not use a serif typeface. The rattlesnake is sometimes shown as resting on a green ground; representations dating from 1885 and 1917 do not display anything below the rattlesnake. The rattlesnake usually faces to the left, and the early representations mentioned above face left. However, some versions of
2640-753: The Interior [REDACTED] Flag of the National Park Service [REDACTED] Guidon of the National Park Service [REDACTED] Flag of the Bureau of Indian Affairs [REDACTED] Flag of the Fish and Wildlife Service [REDACTED] Flag of the Bureau of Land Management [REDACTED] Flag of the Geological Survey Many agencies, departments, and offices of the U.S. federal government have their own flags, guidons, or standards. Following traditional American vexillology, these usually consist of
2720-740: The Mesopotamian lion-griffin. There is also the Armenian term Paskuč ( Armenian : պասկուչ ) that had been used to translate Greek gryp 'griffin' in the Septuagint , which H. P. Schmidt characterized as the counterpart of the simurgh. However, the cognate term Baškuč (glossed as 'griffin') also occurs in Middle Persian, attested in the Zoroastrian cosmological text Bundahishn XXIV (supposedly distinguishable from Sēnmurw which also appears in
2800-470: The agency's departmental seal on a blank opaque background, but not always. The flags of the U.S. states , territories , and federal district exhibit a variety of regional influences and local histories, as well as different styles and design principles. Nonetheless, the majority of the states' flags share the same design pattern consisting of the state seal superimposed on a monochrome background, commonly every different shade of blue, which remains
2880-661: The ancient Greek Phoenix . The Bible mentions the Ziz in Psalms 50:11. This is also similar to a cherub . The cherub, or sphinx, was very popular in Phoenician iconography. In ancient Crete, griffins became very popular, and were portrayed in various media. A similar creature is the Minoan Genius . In the Hindu religion, Garuda is a large bird-like creature that serves as a mount ( vahana ) of
2960-459: The ant into his description of griffins. Later, Pliny the Elder became the first to explicitly state the griffins as having wings and long ears. In one of the two passages, Pliny also located the "griffons" in Æthiopia . According to Adrienne Mayor , Pliny also wrote, "griffins were said to lay eggs in burrows on the ground and these nests contained gold nuggets ". Apollonius of Tyana , who
3040-535: The appropriate number of blue stars in an identical pattern as URL admiral's flags) . [REDACTED] Flag of an URL Navy vice admiral [REDACTED] Flag of an URL Navy rear admiral [REDACTED] Flag of an URL Navy rear admiral (lower half) [REDACTED] Flag of United States Navy Chaplain Corps [REDACTED] Flag of Military Sealift Command [REDACTED] Church Pennant [REDACTED] Jewish Worship Pennant The Civil Air Patrol (CAP)
3120-586: The case, rejecting the United Veterans' First Amendment argument and ruling that the flagpole in question was city property and thus did not represent private speech. In 2014, a US Postal Service employee filed a complaint about a coworker repeatedly wearing a hat with a Gadsden Flag motif at work. Postal service administration dismissed the complaint, but the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reversed
3200-400: The cauldron Griffins. Benson's emphasis is that the Greeks attached a stylized "anorganic" topknot or an "inorganic" plug on the griffin's head (due to lack of information), while in contrast, a known oriental example (stone protomes from Nimrud ) is simple but more "plausible" (naturalistic), resembling a forelock. A cluster of "warts" between the eyes are also mentioned. One conjecture
3280-522: The chariots for its rider, the weather god. The "lion-griffin" on Akkadian seals are also shown as fire-belching, and shaggy (at the neck) in particular examples. The bronzeworks of Luristan , the North and North West region of Iran in the Iron Age , include examples of Achaemenid art depicting both the "bird-griffin" and "lion-griffin" designs, such as are found on horse-bits . Bernard Goldman maintains
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3360-649: The colonies in order to supply the Continental Army, which was desperately undersupplied in the opening years of the American Revolutionary War . Continental Colonel Christopher Gadsden represented South Carolina in the Congress, and he was one of seven members of the Marine Committee outfitting the first naval mission. Paul Aron described Gadsden as a "leading advocate of an American navy." The first Marines carried drums painted yellow and depicting
3440-490: The decision and called for a careful investigation. The EEOC issued a statement clarifying that it did not make any decision that the Gadsden flag was a "racist symbol," or that wearing a depiction of it constituted racial discrimination. In 2023, a seventh grader at The Vanguard School in Colorado Springs was removed from school for wearing several patches that were "in violation of the school’s dress code policy" including
3520-469: The deity Vishnu . It is also the name for the constellation Aquila . Local lore on the gryps or griffin was gathered by Aristeas of Proconnesus, a Greek who traveled to the Altai region between Mongolia and NW China in the 7th century BC. Although Aristeas's original poem was lost, the gryps lore preserved in secondhand accounts by the playwright Aeschylus (ca. 460 BC), and later his contemporary, Herodotus
3600-561: The design to serve as a physical symbol of the American Revolution's ideals. The rattlesnake was seen in Charleston, South Carolina as a "noble and useful" animal that gave warning before it attacked. Before being appointed to lead the Navy, Hopkins had led The United Companies of the Train of Artillery of the Town of Providence , a unit that flew a flag similar to Gadsden's. He unfurled the Gadsden flag on
3680-596: The first reference to the rattlesnake in a satirical commentary published in his Pennsylvania Gazette . It had become the policy of the British Parliament to send convicted criminals to Britain's North American colonies (primarily the Province of Georgia ), so Franklin suggested that Americans thank Parliament by sending rattlesnakes to Britain. In 1754, during the French and Indian War , Franklin published Join, or Die ,
3760-577: The flag during the early part of the war. The rattlesnake was a symbol of the unity of the Thirteen Colonies at the start of the Revolutionary War, and it had a long history as a political symbol in America. Benjamin Franklin used it for his Join, or Die woodcut in 1754. Gadsden intended his flag to serve as a physical symbol of the American Revolution's ideals. The flag has been described as
3840-466: The flag have changed the words "Don't Tread On Me" to "Don't Tread On Anyone", in one version replacing the single snake with multiple snakes of different colors, or in other cases with a porcupine. In the mid-1970s, the New Left People's Bicentennial Commission used the Gadsden flag symbolism on buttons and literature. Following Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization , which struck down Roe v. Wade , abortion rights activists were seen at
3920-432: The flag in 1775 during the American Revolution . He gave the flag to Commodore Esek Hopkins , and it was unfurled on the main mast of Hopkins' flagship USS Alfred on December 20, 1775. Two days later, Congress made Hopkins commander-in-chief of the Continental Navy . He adopted the Gadsden banner as his personal flag, flying it from the mainmast of the flagship while he was aboard. The Continental Marines also flew
4000-415: The flag show the snake facing to the right. The timber rattlesnake can be found in the area of the original Thirteen Colonies . Like the bald eagle , part of its significance is that it was unique to the Americas, serving as a means of showing a separate identity from the Old World. Its use as a symbol of the American colonies can be traced back to the publications of Benjamin Franklin . In 1751, he made
4080-447: The flag was flown with notability in a foreign inauguration. Parodies and pastiches of the Gadsden flag exist; one common design replaces the "Don't tread on me" motto with "No Step on Snek ", sometimes paired with a crudely drawn snake. The Gadsden flag has made numerous appearances in popular culture, particularly in post-apocalyptic stories. [REDACTED] Media related to Gadsden flag at Wikimedia Commons History of
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#17328515207344160-405: The flags of the United States#Historical flags This is a list of flags in the United States describing the evolution of the flag of the United States , as well as other flags used within the United States, such as the flags of governmental agencies . There are also separate flags for embassies and ships. Since 1818, a star for each new state has been added to the flag on the Fourth of July
4240-467: The god Apollo due to "syncretism between the two gods". At the Temple of Hera at Samos , a griffin-themed bronze "wine-cup" or "cauldron" had been installed, according to Herodotus. The vessel was attached griffin heads around the rim (like the protomes , described above): it was an Argolic or Argive krater , according to the text, standing on a tripod shaped like colossal figures. The notion that griffins lay stones or agate instead of eggs
4320-481: The gold which the griffins collected from various areas in the periphery (presumably including the Armaspi's territorial stream, the stream of Pluto "rolling with gold"). The equestrian Arimaspi would ride off with the loot, and the griffins would give pursuit. Aeschylus likened the gryps to "silent hounds of Zeus" That they are called dogs or hounds here has led to the conjecture that Aeschylus considered them wingless or flightless. Whereas Ctesias , had located
4400-401: The griffin's neck, carven on some of the Greek protomes. The tendril motif emerged at the beginning of the first millennium, BC., in various parts of the Orient. The "double spiral of hair running downwards from the base of the ear" is said to be a hallmark of Iranian (Uratrian) art. The Etruscan cauldron-griffins (e.g., from Barberini tomb [ it ] , figure right ) also bear
4480-477: The griffins in India, and more explicitly classed them as beaked, four-legged birds. Herodotus also mentions elsewhere that there are gold-collecting ants in Kashmir , India, and this has been interpreted by modern scholars as "doublets or garbled versions" of the lore of gold-hoarding griffins. It appears that the accounts of griffins given by Pliny had been admixed with the lore of these gold-guarding ants of India, and later Aelian also inserted attributes of
4560-402: The historian. Herodotus explains (via Aristeas) that the gold-guarding griffin supposedly dwelled further north from the one-eyed Arimaspi people who robbed the gold from the fabulous creatures. Aristeas is said to have been informed through the Issedones people neighboring region to the Arimaspi, in the northern extremes (of Central Asia). Aeschylus also concurs that the Arimaspi robbed
4640-429: The identifiable attested "accounts" presented in scholarship are largely not literary, but artistic, or numismatic . The griffin was naturally linked to Apollo, given the existence of the cultus of Hyperborean Apollo , with a cult center at the Greek colony of Olbia on the Black Sea . And even the main Temple of Apollo at Delphi featured a statue of the god flanked by griffins, or so it can be presumed based on
4720-401: The image of a griffin attacking a horse. Other Scythian artifacts show griffins attacking horses, stags, and goats. Griffins are typically shown attacking horses, deer, and humans in Greek art. Nomads were said to steal griffin-guarded gold according to Scythian oral traditions reported by Greek and Roman travelers. Several ancient mythological creatures are similar to the griffin. These include
4800-405: The kingdom of Macedon or a personal emblem of Antipater , one of Alexander 's successors. A golden frontal half of a griffin-like animal from the Ziwiye hoard (near Saqqez city) in Kurdistan Province , Iran resembles the western protomes in style. They were of Urartian workmanship (neither Assyrian or Scythian), though the hoard itself may have represented a Scythian burial. The animal
4880-443: The later lore that griffins deposited agate stone among the eggs in their nest. Pliny placed the griffins in Æthiopia , and Ctesias (5th century BC) in greater India . Scholars have observed that legends about the gold-digging ants of India may have contaminated griffin lore. In the Christian era, Isidore of Seville (7th century AD) wrote that griffins were a great enemy of horses. This notion may have readily developed from
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#17328515207344960-415: The liberty and blessings which America affords, and once come over to her, never afterwards leave her, but spend their lives with her. The rattlesnake symbol was first officially adopted by the Continental Congress in 1778 when it approved the design for the seal of the War Office. At the top center of the seal is a rattlesnake holding a banner that says, "This we'll defend". This design of the War Office seal
5040-562: The lion's ears, but are often elongated (more like a horse 's), and are sometimes feathered. The griffin of Greece, as depicted in cast bronze cauldron protomes (cf. below), has a squat face with short beaks that are open agape as if screaming, with the tongue showing. There is also a "top-knob" on its head or between the brows. There may also be so-called "tendrils", or curled "spiral-locks" depicted, presumably representing either hair/mane or feather/crest locks dangling down. Single- or double-streaked tendrils hang down both sides and behind
5120-404: The main mast of USS Alfred on December 20, 1775, while the ship was at anchor in Chesapeake Bay . Whenever he was aboard, Hopkins flew the flag from the mainmast of the flagship as his personal banner. Alfred was also the first recorded ship to fly the Grand Union Flag , the first national flag of the United States, when Senior Lieutenant John Paul Jones hoisted it on December 3, 1775, while
5200-421: The modern Persian language , the griffin has come to be called šērdāl ( Persian : شیردال ), meaning 'lion-eagle'. However, the practice of referring to ancient Iranian griffin objects or monuments as sherdal , is not followed by other current archaeological scholarship (e.g., here ). Possible Old or Middle Iranian names for the creature have been discussed. Middle Persian Sēnmurw in Sasanian culture
5280-560: The physical descriptions are not very explicit. Thus even though they are sharp-beaked, their being likened to "unbarking hounds of Zeus" has led to the speculation they were seen as wingless. Pliny the Elder (1st century) was the first to explicitly state that griffins were winged and long eared. But Apollonius of Tyana wrote that griffins did not have true bird wings, but only membranous webbed feet that only gave them capability of short-distanced flight. Writers after Aelian (3rd century AD) did not add new material to griffin lore, except for
5360-564: The plain cauldrons imported from the Near East. Detractors (notably K. R. Maxwell-Hyslop ) believe that (early examples of ) the griffin-ornamented cauldron, in its entirely, were crafted in the East, though excavated finds from the Orient are scarce. In Central Asia , the griffin image was included in Scythian "animal style" artifacts of the 6th–4th centuries BC, but no writings explain their meaning. The Golden Pectoral from Tovsta Mohyla , interred in Scythian king's burial site, perhaps commissioned to Greek goldsmiths , who engraved
5440-445: The position that Luristan examples must be counted as developments of the "lion-griffin" type, even when it exhibits "stylization .. approaching the beak of a bird". The Luristan griffin-like creatures resemble and perhaps are descended from Assyrian creatures, possibly influenced by Mitannian animals, or perhaps there had been parallel development in both Assyrian and Elamite cultures. Bird-headed mammal images appeared in art of
5520-405: The representation struck on the tetradrachm coinage of Attica. Apollo rode a griffin to Hyperboria each winter, leaving Delphi, or so it was believed. Apollo riding griffin is known from multiple examples of red-figure pottery . And Apollo hitched griffins to his chariot according to Claudian . Dionysus was also depicted on a griffin-chariot or mounting griffin; the motif was borrowed from
5600-435: The revolution, along with the blue and white crescent flag of pre-Civil War South Carolina . The Gadsden flag has become a popular specialty license plate in several states. As of 2022, the following states offer the option of obtaining a Gadsden flag specialty license plate: Alabama , Arizona , Florida , Kansas , Maryland , Missouri , Montana , Oklahoma , South Carolina , Tennessee , Texas , and Virginia . In
5680-518: The same text). Middle Persian Paškuč is also attested in Manichaean magical texts (Manichaean Middle Persian: pškwc ), and this must have meant a "griffin or a monster like a griffin" according to W. B. Henning . The griffin was given names which were descriptive epithets, such as tštš or tesh-tesh meaning "Tearer[-in-pieces]" inscribed on a griffin image found in a tomb at Deir El Bersha ; and sfr / srf "fiery one", attested at Beni Hasan . The descriptive epithet "Tearer"
5760-738: The ship floated in the Delaware River near Philadelphia . By winter 1775, the South Carolina Provincial Congress expected that British forces would attack Charleston and recalled Gadsden home from Congress in Philadelphia to command the 1st South Carolina Regiment . By January 14, Gadsden had both his orders to return home and permission from the Continental Congress to leave. On Friday, February 9, 1776, he presented an example of his yellow rattlesnake flag to president of
5840-401: The snake and motto placed over a rainbow flag . Following the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting , posters containing a rainbow Gadsden flag inscribed with "#ShootBack" were placed around West Hollywood . The Gadsden flag has been used by supporters of Argentine right-libertarian president Javier Milei . During Milei's inauguration, there were Gadsden flags flown which is one of the first times
5920-1010: The state's legislature. Flag of Alabama (February 16, 1895) Flag of Alaska (May 2, 1927) Flag of Arizona (February 27, 1917) Flag of Arkansas (February 26, 1913) Flag of California (February 3, 1911) Flag of Colorado (June 5, 1911) Flag of Connecticut (September 9, 1897) Flag of Delaware (July 24, 1913) Flag of Florida (May 6, 1868) Flag of Georgia (February 19, 2003) Flag of Hawaii (December 29, 1845) Flag of Idaho (March 12, 1907) Flag of Illinois (September 17, 1969) Flag of Indiana (May 11, 1917) Flag of Iowa (March 29, 1921) Flag of Kansas (September 24, 1961) Flag of Kentucky (March 26, 1918) Griffin The griffin , griffon , or gryphon ( Ancient Greek : γρύψ , romanized : grýps ; Classical Latin : grȳps or grȳpus ; Late and Medieval Latin : gryphes , grypho etc.; Old French : griffon )
6000-465: The tradition that horseback-riding Arimaspians raided the griffin gold. The derivation of this word remains uncertain. It could be related to the Greek word γρυπός (grypos), meaning 'curved', or 'hooked'. Greek γρύφ (gryph) from γρύφ 'hook-nosed' is suggested. It could also have been an Anatolian loan word derived from a Semitic language; compare the Hebrew word for cherub כרוב kərúv . In
6080-425: The year immediately following each state's admission. In years in which multiple states have been admitted, the corresponding number of stars were added to the flag. This change has typically been the only change made with each revision of the flag since 1777, with the exception of changes in 1795 and 1818, which increased the number of stripes to 15 and then returned it to 13, respectively. As the exact pattern of stars
6160-447: Was a fabulous composite creature, and Russian archaeologist Boris A. Litvinskij [ ru ] argued for the possibility that the application of this term may extend to the griffin. The term Sēnmurw is recognized as the etymological ancestor of simurgh , which is generally regarded as a mythological bird (rather than a composite) in later medieval Persian literature, though some argue that this bird may have originated from
6240-578: Was carried forward—with some minor modifications—into the subsequent designs as well as the Department of the Army's seal, emblem and flag . As such, some variation of a rattlesnake symbol has been in continuous official use by the US Army for over 243 years. Other American flags that use a rattlesnake motif include The United Companies of the Train of Artillery of the Town of Providence , the First Navy Jack , and
6320-596: Was nearly coeval with Pliny, gave a somewhat unique account of the griffin, claiming them to be lion-sized, and having no true wings, and instead had paws "webbed with red membranes", that gave them ability to makes leaps of flight of only a short distance. Pomponius Mela (fl. AD 43) wrote in his Book ii. 6: In Europe, constantly falling snow makes those places contiguous with the Riphaean Mountains .. so impassable that, in addition, they prevent those who deliberately travel here from seeing anything. After that comes
6400-616: Was not specified prior to 1912, many of the historical U.S. national flags (shown below) have had varied arrangements of the stars. [REDACTED] Flag of the Navy [REDACTED] Flag of the Chief of Naval Operations [REDACTED] Flag of the Vice Chief of Naval Operations [REDACTED] Flag of the Navy fleet admiral [REDACTED] Flag of an unrestricted line (URL) Navy admiral (staff corps flag officers have white flags with
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