In this photo: the Italian flag as interpreted by Moschino - source: Style.it
There is a new exhibition in honour of 150 years of Italian unity at the Vittoriano Complex in Rome: Omaggio al Tricolore charts the history of the Italian flag via documents and other exhibits and also shows a collection of flags formerly used by the Italian Navy.
The highlight of the show is a display, organised jointly with the Chamber of Italian Fashion, of 24 new interpretations of the “tricolore” flag by designers from some of Italy’s top fashion houses such as Alberta Ferretti, Missoni, Trussardi, MaxMara and Roberto Cavalli.
The green , white and red “tricolore” was first flown in Modena as the flag of the Cisalpine Republic in 1797.
When Naopleon formed the Kingdom of Italy in Northern Italy in 1805 he used the green, white and red colours with a Napoleonic eagle symbol as its flag.
In 1848 the flag, this time carrying the coat of arms of the House of Savoy, was adopted as a war flag by the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont. It went through several transformations, carrying different insignia, in the ensuing years but the green, white and red colours remained. The “tricolore” as we know it today was officially adopted in 1948 when the Republican Constitution was promulgated.
There are two interpretations of the colours:
one is that the green represents hope, the white symbolises faith and the red symbolises charity.
The other interpretation is that the green represents the Italian countryside while the white symbolises the snow-tipped Alps and the red symbolises the blood shed by those who fought for Italian independence.
Omaggio al Tricolore is at the Vittoriano until 6th January 2011. Entrance is free.
Which interpretation of the flag colours do you prefer?
