.svg) | |
| Use | Civil flag |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 4:7 |
| Adopted | 4 June 2021 |
.svg) | |
| Use | Civil flag |
| Adopted | 9 June 1978 |
| Relinquished | 4 June 2021 |
| Designed by | Raúla Montesinos Espejo |
The officialflag of the Peruvian city of Cusco has seven horizontal stripes of color:red,orange,yellow,green,sky blue,blue, andviolet. Thisrainbow flag was introduced toPeru in 1973 by Raúl Montesinos Espejo, in recognition of the 25th anniversary of hisTawantinsuyo Radio station. As the flag's popularity grew,Cusco mayor Gilberto Muñiz Caparó declared it an official emblem in 1978.[1][2] Since 2021, the official flag has also featured the goldenSol de Echenique.
In addition to being thecity flag and a co-official flag of theDepartment of Cuzco, a seven-color flag has different uses depending on the context. It is used as theflag forQuechua languages, popular, but unofficial national flag of theQuechua people and flag representing theInca heritage in general.Quechuans in SouthBolivia (Kolla) used this flag, but in recent years the symbol ofChakana has become more popular in Bolivia. Its use as an Inca heritage flag is controversial due to its non-historic nature. Nevertheless, its use shows respect for the history of theInca Empire.
Chronicles of theconquest of Peru mention flags used by the Incas, or something that chroniclers interpreted as a flag.The question of the flag's historicity is closely related to thewiphala orAymara flag.[3]María Rostworowski in 2010 claimed no evidence that ancient cultures used such a flag,[4] and theCongress of the Republic of Peru corroborated the conclusion of National Academy of Peruvian History: "The official use of the wrongly called 'Tawantinsuyu flag' is a mistake. In the Andean World there did not exist the concept of a flag, it did not belong to their historic context".[1]
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The first recorded use of the rainbow flag in Peru was related to theCo-operative movement that entered the scene in the early 20th century. The modern flag was created in the early 1970s on the initiative of a local radio stationRadio Rural. In 1973, on the occasion of the station's twenty-fifth anniversary, Raúla Montesinos Espejo proposed the rainbow flag, presenting it as belonging to the Incas. Unfortunately, Montesinos never submitted a study that proves the design's authenticity, and it was accepted de facto without further evidence. The flag has since grown in popularity, but people mistakenly associate it withTahuantinsuyo. Five years later, on June 9, 1978, theMunicipality ofCusco Province took the flag as official; 16 days before thegay pride flag first flew inSan Francisco in the United States. It is the second flag of Cuzco. The first flag used earlier consisted of a scarlet background and a coat of arms dating back to Spanish times, given in 1540. Due to its resemblance to the much more recognizable LGBT flag, the Echenique's sun was added to the flag in 2021. It is a golden disk that was given to thePeruvian PresidentJosé Rufino Echenique during his visit to Cusco in 1853 and official emblem of the department, province and city of Cuzco since 1986.[5]
