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{{Short description|Flag-like object that represents an entity}} [[File:Roman Standards.jpg|thumb|An illustration of eleven Imperial Roman vexilloids.]] A '''vexilloid''' is any flag-like (vexillary) object used by countries, organisations, or individuals as a form of representation other than [[flag]]s. American [[vexillologist]] [[Whitney Smith]] coined the term ''vexilloid'' in 1958, defining it as {{quote|An object which functions as a flag but differs from it in some respect, usually appearance. Vexilloids are characteristic of traditional societies and often consist of a [[flag#Flagpoles|staff]] with an emblem, such as a carved animal, at the top.}} This includes [[vexillum|vexilla]], [[banderole]]s, [[pennon]]s, streamers, [[heraldic flag|heraldic flags]], standards, and [[gonfalon]]s.<ref>{{citation | url = http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/xf-vxid.html | title = Vexilloids | publisher = Flags of the World |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404102423/https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/xf-vxid.html |archive-date= Apr 4, 2023 }}.</ref> Examples include the [[Sassanid]] battle standard [[Derafsh Kaviani]], and the standards of the [[Roman legion|Roman legions]] such as the [[Aquila (Roman)|eagle]] of [[Augustus Caesar]]'s [[Legio X Fretensis|Xth legion]] and the [[Draconarius|dragon standard]] of the [[Sarmatians]]; the latter was allowed to fly freely in the wind, carried by a horseman, but depictions suggest that it bore more similarity to an elongated [[dragon kite]] than to a simple flag.<ref name=":0" /> [[File:Weksyloidy.jpg|thumb|An illustration of several types of Vexilloid]] The use of flags replaced the use of vexilloids for general purposes during late [[medieval]] times between about 1100 to about 1400. However, vexilloids still remain in use for specialised purposes, such as for some [[military units]] or to symbolise various organisations such as [[fraternal organisation]] in street parades.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/flagsthroughages00smit|title=Flags through the ages and across the world|last=Smith|first=Whitney|date=1975|publisher=McGraw-Hill|isbn=9780070590939|location=New York|oclc=1324552|url-access=registration}}</ref> ==History== Vexilloids originally started as a [[staff of office]] for leaders of groups, such as tribes, and were also used as a visible sign to rally around or point to a direction of attack. They were originally made of wood, horns, tails, hooves, and skins of animals, with other ornaments being made of carved and painted wood or metal. Aztec vexilloids were composed of green quetzal feathers, metals such as gold, and precious stones. Modern vexilloids used by tribes of New Guinea are made of wood, dried grass and feathers, and emblems painted on wood, feathers, and cloth.<ref name=DEF>{{cite book |last1=Znamierowski|first1=Alfred |last2=Slater|first2=Stephen|date=2007 |title=The World Encyclopedia of Flags and Heraldry, An International History of Heraldry and Its Contemporary Uses Together with the Definitive Guide to National Flags, Banners, Standards and Ensigns |publisher=Fall River Press|page=13 |isbn=978-1-4351-1838-6}}</ref> [[File:Narmer-Tjet2.JPG|thumb|left|A detail from the [[Narmer Palette]], with the oldest known depiction of vexilloids.]] The oldest known vexilloids appear as depictions on Egyptian pottery from the [[Gerzeh culture]] and on the reverse of the [[Narmer Palette]]. These vexilloids were symbols of the [[Nome (Egypt)|nomes]] of pre-dynastic Egypt. The oldest surviving vexilloid was carried in Persia around 5,000 years ago. It consists of a metal staff topped with an eagle, and a square of metal covered with reliefs. Two vexilloids are depicted on the [[Victory Stele of Naram-Sin]]. In [[Alaca Höyük]], archaeologists have discovered Hittite vexilloids dating from c.2400–2200 BCE, having [[finials]] depicting bulls, stags, as well as abstract forms often interpreted as solar symbols.<ref name=DEF></ref> [[File:Sunga horseman Bharhut.jpg|thumb|right|Shunga horseman holding a vexilloid standard. [[Bharhut]].]] Ancient Greek armies used a {{lang|la|vexillum}}-like banners, such as the so-called {{lang|grc-Latn|phoinikis}}, a cloth of deep red, suspended from the top of a staff or spear. It is not known to have carried any device or decoration though. Ancient Romans adopted the use of vexilloids, as well as their [[Aquila (Roman)|eagle emblem]], from the Persians. The standards of Roman legions consisted of a lance with a silver-plated shaft, topped with a crosspiece carrying figures of various beasts, the most important being the eagle. Attached to the shaft were several metal rings which took the form of laurel wreaths and medallions with images of gods, the Emperor, and members of the Imperial House.<ref name=DEF></ref> Ancient Mongolians also used vexilloids in the form of a staff topped with a metal ball or spearhead, with a horse's tail attached to it. This vexilloid, called a [[Tug (banner)|tug]], spread among Turkish people and became military symbols in Turkish forces. In the 17th and 18th centuries they were carried before commanders-in-chief of the Polish Army.<ref name=DEF></ref> ==Examples== ===Ancient=== * The [[Achaemenid Empire]] used a stylised [[falcon]] on its vexilloid. * The vexilloid of [[Alexander the Great]]'s [[Macedonian Empire]] displayed the [[Vergina Sun]]. * The [[Greco-Bactrian Kingdom]] has an [[Elephant]] as their symbol. * The [[Indo-Greek Kingdom]] has The [[Triratna|Buddhist Triratna]] as their symbol. * The [[Indo-Scythians]] has a [[Lion]] or a [[Leopard]] standing right as their symbol. * The vexilloid of The [[Indo-Parthian Kingdom]] is likely pretty similar to The Parthian Sun and it is related with The Derafsh Kaviani. * The vexilloid of The [[Kushan Empire]] is suspended on the point of a [[Spear]] or [[Trident]] * The symbol of the [[Mauryan Empire]] was the [[Ashoka Chakra]]. * The [[Gupta Empire]] has The [[Garuda]] as their symbol. * The vexilloid of [[Ancient Carthage]] most probably consisted of a spear with a disk and crescent (points upwards), symbolising the god [[Baal]] (sun = disk) and the goddess [[Tanit]] (moon = crescent).<ref>[http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/lb_phoen.html#apv Vexilloid of the Carthaginian Empire:]</ref> * The [[Ptolemaic Kingdom]] has The [[Eagle of Zeus]] as their symbol. * The [[vexillum]] of [[Ancient Rome]] displayed the slogan <small>[[SPQR|S·P·Q·R]]</small> (''senātus populusque Rōmānus''), "The Roman Senate and People", in [[Gold (color)|gold]] on a field of [[crimson]]. * The [[Sassanian Empire]], which is called ''Eran Shahr'' (''[[Aryan]] Empire'') in [[Middle Persian]],<ref>[[Josef Wiesehofer|Wiesehofer, Joseph]] ''Ancient Persia'' New York:1996 I.B. Tauris</ref> used lotus symbol on its vexilloid, which is called the [[Derafsh Kaviani]].<ref>[http://www.rastakhiz.org/rastakhiz/ban/pahlavanan/aryamanesh/main.html Website honoring Dr. Kourosh Aryamanesh—Depicts images of the Derafsh Kaviani:]</ref><ref>[http://www.rastakhiz.org/rastakhiz/ban/pahlavanan/aryamanesh/derafsh-kaviani.gif Image of the Derafsh Kaviani:]</ref> {{Clear}} [[File:Drawing.svg.2021 05 28 18 45 37.0.svg|thumb|Vexilloid of Baden ''Garde Du Corps'' 1740–1919]] ===Medieval=== * The [[tugh]] of Central Asian and Turkic peoples of the pre-[[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] and Ottoman periods. * The vexilloid of the [[Mongol Empire]], the "Yöson Khölt tsagaan tug" ({{langx|mn|Есөн хөлт цагаан туг|links=no}}) or the "[[Banner (Mongols)#The Nine White banners|Nine Base White Banners]]", was composed of nine flag poles decorated with nine [[off-white]] horse tail hairs hanging from a round surface with a flame or [[trident]]-like shape on the top at the centre. The Nine White Banners was a peacetime emblem used by the [[List of Mongol Khans|Khan]] in front of his yurt. The [[war flag]] of the Mongol Empire was the same as the banner at right, except the horse tails were [[Shades of black (colors)|off-black]] instead of off-white as they were cut from black instead of white horses. * [[Heraldic flag]]s are forms of vexilloids with designs based on [[heraldry]], a famous example being the [[Oriflamme]] of France. * The [[Chola empire]] had the [[tiger]] as their symbol and flag. ===Modern=== * The [[French Imperial Eagle]] was a figure of an eagle on a staff carried into battle by the ''[[Grande Armée]]'' of [[Napoleon]] during the [[Napoleonic Wars]]. * In [[Nazi Germany]], also referred to as the [[Third Reich]], the [[SS]] used vexilloids which they marched with in street parades and at the [[Nuremberg rallies]]. These vexilloids were topped with an [[eagle]] and a [[swastika]] and with the name of the particular locale of the SS contingent carrying the vexilloids. Inscribed on them was the slogan ''Deutschland Erwache'', which means ''Germany Awake''.<ref>[http://www.museumofworldwarii.com/TourText/Area02_RiseofNazism.htm Hitler and the Rise of Nazism (Museum of World War II – Navick, Massachusetts, USA):] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100529131521/http://www.museumofworldwarii.com/TourText/Area02_RiseofNazism.htm |date=May 29, 2010 }}</ref><ref>[http://www.museumofworldwarii.com/Images2005/02DeutschlandErwachelge.gif Image of an SS vexilloid:] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101218165741/http://www.museumofworldwarii.com/Images2005/02DeutschlandErwachelge.gif |date=December 18, 2010 }}</ref> * Individuals create [[Festival totem|festival totems]] of various designs on top of extendable staffs to identify themselves in disorienting crowds at music festivals.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hughes |first=Dalton |date=December 2023 |title=Flags and Totems at Music Festivals: A Modern Twist on Ancient Vexilloids |url=https://www.nava.org/content.aspx?page_id=31&club_id=622278&action=login&sl=1959379529 |journal=Vexillum: Research and Information from the North American Vexillological Association |volume=24 |issue=December 2023 |pages=12–15}}</ref> ==Sources== *{{cite book |title=Flags Through the Ages and Across the World |last=Smith |first=Whitney |author-link=Whitney Smith |year=1975 |publisher=McGraw-Hill |location=New York |isbn=0-07-059093-1 |url=https://archive.org/details/flagsthroughages00smit |url-access=registration }} ==References== <references /> ==External links== * [http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/xf-vxid.html Entry on Vexilloids in the Flags of the World website:] {{Commonscat|Vexilloids}} {{Vexillology}} {{Heraldry}} [[Category:Vexillology]] [[Category:1950s neologisms]] [[Category:Gerzeh culture]] [[Category:Types of flags]]
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