Flag of the United States

Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and American Samoa may eventually become states as well. The communities include Chrysso which in ancient times was Crissa. Other insular areas such as the U.S. Delphi also has a school, a lyceum and a square (plateia). There are ongoing statehood movements in Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, and New York City. The two main streets are each one-way and narrow. The United States Army's Institute of Heraldry has plans for flags with up to 56 stars using a similar staggered star arrangement in case additional states accede. It is passed by a major highway linking Amfissa along with Itea and Arachova.

(For alternate versions, see this page at Flags of the World.)
. The modern Delphi or Delfi or Delfoi is situated west of the archaeological site. In the following table depicting the 27 designs of the United States flag, the star patterns for each flag are merely the usual patterns, with the exception of the 48-, 49-, and 50-star flags, as there was no official arrangement of the stars until the proclamation of the 48-star flag by President William Howard Taft in 1912. Three of the Doric colums have been restored, making it the most popular site at Delphi for tourists to take photographs. By the same reports, this arrangement was rejected due to similarity to the British flag. The Tholos is located approximately a half-mile (800 m) from the main ruins at Delphi. He reportedly originally wanted the stars arranged in four bands, one vertical, one horizontal, and two diagonal. It consisted of 20 Doric columns arranged with an exterior diamater of 14.76 meters, with 10 Corinthian columns in the interior.

Another popular theory is that the flag was designed by Francis Hopkinson. The Tholos at the sanctuary of Athena Pronaia is a circular building that was constructed between 380 and 360 B.C. Comparisons between the 2 flags support Fawcett's suggestion. Another impressive treasury that exists on the site was dedicated by the city of Siphnos, who had ammassed great wealth from their silver and gold mines and so they dedicated the Siphnian Treasury. The British historian Sir Charles Fawcett has suggested that the design of the flag may have been derived from the flag and jack of the British East India Company. The Athenians had previously been given the advice by the oracle to put their faith in their "wooden walls" – taking this advice to mean their navy, they won a famous battle at Salamis. However, no evidence for this theory exists beyond Ross' own records. The most impressive is the now-restored Treasury of Athens, built to commemorate the Athenians' victory at the Battle of Marathon.

A popular story credits Betsy Ross for sewing the first flag from a pencil sketch by George Washington who personally commissioned her for the job. These were built by the various states – those overseas as well as those on the mainland – to commemorate victories and to thank the oracle for advice important to those victories. flag design is uncertain. From the entrance of the site, continuing up the slope almost to the temple itself, is a large number of votive statues, and numerous treasuries. The origin of the U.S. Other archaeologists believe that the oracle also inhaled fumes of burning bay leaves. The flag flew in battle for the first time at Cooch's Bridge in Delaware on September 3, 1777 during the American Revolutionary War. here for a popular science coverage).

Before that, the admission of Alaska in January 1959 prompted the debut of a short-lived 49-star flag. 707; see e.g. Heft's design was chosen, after Hawaii gained statehood in August 1959. (de Boer et al., Geology 29 (2001) pp. The most recent change, from forty-nine stars to fifty, occurred in 1960 when Robert G. However, recent geological research indicates that the site of the oracle shows young geological faults, and it seems plausible that these emitted in ancient times light hydrocarbon gases, possibly ethylene, from bituminous limestone which do have an intoxicating effect. July 4, Independence Day in the United States, commemorates the founding of the nation. ¹ After investigating the site, archeologists were convinced that these vapours are only a myth, as no evidence for them could be found, and — so the then standard opinion in geology — gaseous emissions from rock only occur in conjunction with volcanic activity.

When the flag design changes, the change always takes place on July 4 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as a consequence of the Flag Act of April 4, 1818. The temple to Apollo at Delphi was built by Trophonius and Agamedes. It was the 15-star, 15-stripe flag that inspired Francis Scott Key to write "The Star-Spangled Banner," now the national anthem. In the 3rd century A.D., the oracle (perhaps bribed) declared that the god would no longer speak there. It was ultimately decided that there would be a star for each state, but the number of stripes would remain at thirteen to honor the original colonies. Another famous motto of Delphi is Meden Agan (Μηδέν Άγαν): "nothing in excess". As further states entered the union, extra stars and stripes were added until this proved to cause too much clutter. This claim is related to one of the most famous mottos of Delphi, which Socrates said he learned there, Gnothi Seauton (Γνώθι Σεαυτόν): "know thyself".

Initially, a variety of designs were used, including a circular arrangement (below), but gradually a design featuring horizontal rows of stars emerged as the standard. The oracle is also said to have proclaimed Socrates the wisest man in Greece, to which Socrates said that if so, this was because he alone was aware of his own ignorance. The Flag Resolution did not specify any particular arrangement for the stars. Croesus of Lydia consulted Delphi before attacking Persia, and according to Herodotus received the answer "if you do, you will destroy a great empire." Croesus found the response favorable and attacked, and was utterly overthrown (resulting, of course, in the destruction of his own empire). Tradition holds that the new flag was first hoisted in June of 1777 by the Continental Army at the Middlebrook encampment. She also was respected by the semi-Hellenic countries around the Greek world, such as Lydia, Caria, and even Egypt. On June 14, 1777, the Second Continental Congress passed the Flag Resolution which stated: "Resolved, That the flag of the United States be made of thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation." Flag Day is now observed on June 14 of each year. This oracle exerted considerable influence across the country, and was consulted before all major undertakings: wars, the founding of colonies, and so forth.

Since 1937, the District of Columbia has used a flag based on this design. Still others claimed the Sibyl received her powers from Gaia originally, who passed the oracle to Themis, who passed it to Phoebe. The red-and-white stripe (and later, stars-and-stripes) motif of the flag may have been based on the Washington family coat-of-arms, which consisted of a shield "argent, two bars gules, above, three mullets gules" (a white shield with two red bars below three red stars). Others said she was sister or daughter to Apollo. The Grand Union Flag is the same as the East India Company flag of the same era, although the East India Company flag could have from 9 to 13 stripes. Pausanias claimed that the Sibyl was "born between man and goddess, daughter of sea monsters and an immortal nymph". This flag formed the basis of the Stars and Stripes, consisting of 13 red and white stripes with the British Union Jack in the canton. The Sibyl sat on the Sibylline Rock, breathing in vapors from the ground¹ and gaining her often puzzling predictions from that.

This flag was initially flown by George Washington and is recorded as being first raised by Washington's troops at Prospect Hill on New Year's Day in 1776. Later, "Sibyl" became a title given to whichever priestess manned the oracle at the time. At the time of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776, the most commonly flown flag was the Grand Union Flag. She sang her predictions, which she received from Gaia. The current 50-star version will tie the record if it is still in use on July 4, 2007. The first oracle at Delphi was commonly known as Sibyl or Pythia, though her name was Herophile. The 48-star version holds the record, 47 years, for the longest time the flag has gone unchanged. The oracle at that time predicted the future based on the lapping water and leaves rustling in the trees.

The flag has gone through 26 changes since the new union of 13 states first adopted it. The shrine dedicated to Apollo was probably originally dedicated to Gaia and then Poseidon. According to Presidential proclamation, Congressional order, and custom, the American flag is displayed continuously at the following locations:. Apollo killed Python but had to be punished for it, since Python was a child of Gaia. According to the New York Public Library Desk Reference:. This was the spring which emitted vapors that caused the Oracle at Delphi to give her prophesies. the Philippines, also use this method to fold their flags. When young, Apollo killed the chthonic serpent Python, which lived beside the Castalian Spring, according to some because Python had attempted to rape Leto while she was pregnant with Apollo and Artemis.

Former American territories, e.g. Even in Roman times hundreds of votive statues remained, described by Pliny the Younger and seen by Pausanias. The final triangle shape result is said to invoke the image of the three-point hats popular during the American Revolutionary War. Delphi was the site of a major temple to Phoebus Apollo, as well as the Pythian Games and a famous oracle. Flags, when not in use, should be folded into a triangle shape. In commemoration of this legend, the winners at the Pythian Games received a laurel wreath picked in Tempe. Instead, the flag should be moved so it is not touching the ground. Another legend held that Apollo walked to Delphi from the north and stopped at Tempe, a city in Thessaly to pick laurel, a plant sacred to him.

Contrary to a commonly believed urban legend, the flag code does not state that a flag that touches the ground should be burned. The epithet is connected with dolphins (the "womb-fish") in the Homeric Hymn to Apollo Εις Απόλλωνα Πύθιον, 400), telling how Apollo first came to Delphi in the shape of a dolphin, carrying Cretan priests on his back. In other countries and places, local etiquette applies. either "the one of Delphi", or "the one of the womb". jurisdiction. Apollo is connected with the site by his epithet Δελφίνιος Delphinios, "the Delphinian", i.e. This etiquette is as applied within U.S. The name Delphoi is connected with δελφός delphus "womb" and may indicate archaic veneration of an Earth Goddess at the site.

These are guidelines, not laws; there is no penalty for failure to comply with them. Southwest of Delphi, about 15 km away, is the harbor-city of Kirrha on the Corinthian Gulf. There are certain guidelines for the use and display of the United States flag as outlined in the United States Flag Code of the federal government. This semicircular spur is known as Phaedriades; it overlooks the Pleistos Valley. According to Heft, his teacher did keep to their agreement and changed his grade to an "A" for the project. Parnassus. Heft's flag design was chosen and adopted by presidential proclamation after Alaska and before Hawaii was admitted into the union in 1959. Delphi is located in a plateau on the side of Mt.

After discussing the grade with his teacher, it was agreed (somewhat jokingly) that if the flag was accepted by Congress, the grade would be reconsidered. . He originally received a "B-" for the project. 61, 84). His mother was a seamstress, but forced Heft to do all of the work on his own. After the battle of Plataea, the Greek cities extinguished their fires and brought new fire from the hearth of Greece, at Delphi; in the foundation stories of several Greek colonies, the founding colonists were first dedicated at Delphi (Burkert, 1985, pp. He was 17 years old at the time and did the flag design as a class project. In the inner εστία (hestia), or hearth, of the Temple of Delphic Apollo (Απόλλων Δελφίνιος - Apollon Delphinios), an άσβεστος φλόγα (eternal flame) burned.

The current 50-star flag was designed by Robert Heft in 1958 while living with his grandparents in Ohio. Delphi was revered throughout the Greek world as the site of the ομφαλός (omphalos) stone, the centre of the universe. It gives the colors by reference to "Standard Color Cards of America" maintained by the Color Association of the United States, Inc., as. In ancient times it was the site of the Delphic Sibyl, dedicated to the god Apollo. According to Flags of the World, the colors are specified by the General Services Administration "Federal Specification, Flag, National, United States of America and Flag, Union Jack," DDD-F-416E, dated November 27, 1981. Delphi (Greek Δελφοί - Delphoi; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is an archaeological site and a modern town in Greece. Presumably E and F are approximations of 7/130 = 0.0[538461], and G and H are approximations of 0.76/12 = 0.06[3]. Burkert, Walter, Greek Religion 1985.

The specification gives the following values:. The New York Times, March 19, 2002: "Fumes and Visions Were Not a Myth for Oracle at Delphi". The design of the flag is specified by United States Code title 4, chapter 1, section 1 [1]. Geology of Delphi. A book about the flag published by the Congress in 1977 gives further symbolism for the flag:. John Roach, "Delphic Oracle's Lips May Have Been Loosened by Gas Vapors" in National Geographic news, August 2001. ^{[USGov 4]}. Hale, et al., "Questioning the Delphic Oracle: When science meets religion at this ancient Greek site, the two turn out to be on better terms than scholars had originally thought", in Scientific American August 2003.

Reid suggested that the number of stripes be set at thirteen to represent the original 13 colonies and that only the number of stars be set to the number of states. John R. Naval Captain Samuel C. "The Delphic oracle". During the debate that eventually resulted in the Flag Act of 1818, U.S. Eloise Hart, "The Delphic oracle". However, this became unwieldy as states were added to the union. Livius Picture Archive: Delphi.

Originally, both the number of stripes and the number of stars were supposed to represent the number of states. Osborne , "A Short detour to Delphi and the Sibyls". Thomson. C. Rather, the meanings were a matter of contemporary fashion and personal preference on the part of Mr. Delphi (in Greek). Meanings were attached to the colors (which, contrary to popular misinformation, is not part of any of the rules of heraldry). Delphi guide.

However, on June 20, 1782, Charles Thomson, the secretary of the Continental Congress, gave a report to the Congress defining the new Great Seal of the United States. The Oracle of Delphi and Ancient Oracles, annotated guide edited by Tim Spalding. When the Second Continental Congress proposed the Flag Resolution on June 14, 1777, there was no particular symbolism attached to the colors or their arrangement on the flag. Hellenic Ministry of Culture: Delphi. Some groups concerned by these actions have proposed a Flag Burning Amendment that would give Congress the authority to outlaw burning the flag in disrespect or protest. Homepage of the modern municipality (in English or Greek). Burning the flag has also been used as a deliberate act of disrespect (flag desecration), at times to protest actions by the United States government, or sometimes in displays of anti-Americanism overseas.

Then the three pieces are typically placed on a pyre as "Taps" is played. The flag is cut into three pieces: first a horizontal cut is made between the seventh and eighth stripes, then a vertical cut separating the star field from the seven shorter stripes. The approved method of destroying old and tattered flags consists of burning them in a simple ceremony. Declaration of Independence.

Perhaps most of all they see it as a symbol of individual and personal liberty like those put forth in the U.S. Constitution and its Bill of Rights. They have seen it as representing all of the freedoms and rights guaranteed in the U.S. citizens, their flag symbolizes many things.

To many U.S. war dead. On Memorial Day it is common to place small flags by war memorials and next to the graves of U.S. Many institutions, and some homeowners, display the flag year-round, while some reserve flag display for civic holidays like Memorial Day, Veteran's Day, Presidents' Day, Flag Day and the Fourth of July.

. flag is described as "A banner Gules, 6 bars Argent; the canton Azure charged with 50 mullets Argent.". In blazons (a vexillological description using flag terminology), the U.S. The United States flag is commonly called the "the Stars and Stripes" or "Old Glory," with the latter nickname coined in 1831 by Captain William Driver, a Salem, Massachusetts shipmaster.

The 50 stars on the flag represent the 50 states and the 13 stripes represent the 13 original colonies. The flag of the United States consists of 13 equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing 50 small, white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars (top and bottom) alternating with rows of five stars. Rectangle of stars: 48, 35, 30, 28, 24, 20. Chessboard pattern: 51, 50, 49, 45, 15, 13 (standard).

No symmetry: 43. Both, hence also point symmetry: 50, 48, 46, 45, 44, 37, 36, 34, 33, 32, 28, 26, 24, 20, 15, 13 (standard). Symmetry with respect to vertical axis: 51, 50, 48, 46, 45, 44, 37, 36, 35, 34, 33, 32, 31, 30, 29, 28, 27, 26, 25, 24, 23, 21, 20, 15, 13 (standard and Betsy Ross). Symmetry with respect to horizontal axis: 50, 49, 48, 46, 44, 38, 37, 36, 34, 33, 32, 30, 28, 26, 24, 20, 15, 13 (standard).

It is assumed however that Apollo 11's flag was knocked down by the force of return to lunar orbit. In addition, the American flag is presumed to be in continual display on the surface of the Earth's Moon, having been placed there by the astronauts of Apollo 11, Apollo 12, Apollo 14, Apollo 15, Apollo 16, and Apollo 17. By custom, at Mount Moriah Cemetery in Deadwood, South Dakota. By custom, at the United States Capitol since 1918.

By custom, at the plaza in Taos, New Mexico, since 1861. By custom, at the Worcester, Massachusetts war memorial. By custom, at the home, birthplace and grave of Francis Scott Key, all in Maryland. Washington Camp Ground, part of the former Middlebrook encampment, Bridgewater, New Jersey, Thirteen Star Flag, by Act of Congress.

First raised July 4, 1917.[2]. Mount Slover limestone quarry (Colton Liberty Flag), in Colton, California (Act of Congress). Grounds of the National Memorial Arch in Valley Forge State Park, Valley Forge, Pennsylvania (Public Law 94-53, approved July 4, 1975). By order of Richard Nixon at United States Customs Service Ports of Entry that are continuously open (Presidential Proclamation No.4131, May 5, 1972).

4064, July 6, 1971, effective July 4, 1971). (Presidential Proclamation No. Flags are displayed continuously at the Washington Monument, Washington, DC. Fifty U.S.

The White House, Washington, DC (Presidential Proclamation No.4000, September 4, 1970). Lexington, Massachusetts Town Green (Public Law 89-335, approved November 8, 1965). 3418, June 12, 1961). United States Marine Corps War Memorial (Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima), Arlington, Virginia (Presidential Proclamation No.

Flag House Square, Albemarle and Pratt Streets, Baltimore, Maryland, 15-star/15-stripe flag (Public Law 83-319, approved March 26, 1954). 2795, July 2, 1948). Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, Baltimore, Maryland, 15-star/15-stripe flag (Presidential Proclamation No. flag.

Only the United Nations flag and a Navy chaplain's church pennant may be flown higher than the U.S. In a display of multiple flags, the American flag should be at the center of and above the other flags. Capitol flies over the body in session (House or Senate) and remains there, lit, day and night. The flag at the U.S.

When the flag is completely folded, only a triangular blue field of stars should be visible. The triangular folding is continued until the entire length of the flag is folded in this manner. Turn the outer end point inward, parallel to the open edge, to form a second triangle. Make a triangular fold by bringing the striped corner of the folded edge to meet the open top edge of the flag.

Fold the flag again lengthwise with the blue field on the outside. Fold the lower half of the stripe section lengthwise over the field of stars, holding the bottom and top edges securely. To properly fold the flag, begin by holding it waist-high with another person so that its surface is parallel to the ground. It should not be lowered into the grave.

When used to cover a casket or coffin, the flag should be placed with the union at the head and over the left shoulder. flag is otherwise flown at half-staff (or half-mast, on ships) when directed by the President of the United States or a state governor. The U.S. The flag is to be flown at half-staff in mourning for designated, principal government leaders.

On Memorial Day, the flag is displayed at half-staff until noon and at full staff from noon to sunset. The flag is to be raised again to the peak for a moment before it is lowered. To place the flag at half-staff (or half-mast, on ships), hoist it to the peak for an instant and lower it to a position half way between the top and bottom of the staff. The salute is directed to the flag, if displayed, otherwise to the music.

When the national anthem is played or sung, citizens should stand at attention and salute at the first note and hold the salute through the last note. The Pledge of Allegiance should be rendered by standing at attention, facing the flag, and saluting. Members of organizations in formation salute upon command of the person in charge. Citizens not in uniform salute by placing their right hand over the heart and men with head cover should remove it and hold it to left shoulder, hand over the heart.

Those in uniform give the appropriate formal salute. To salute, all persons come to attention.