The peace flag

The peace flag displayed here is the only surviving example of those made by Aldo Capitini, founder of the nonviolent movement, for the first Peace March from Perugia to Assisi held on September 24th, 1961.

Since then these seven coloured stripes, which trace the colour spectrum of the rainbow, have been recognised as the universal symbol of peace. We can trace the origin of multicoloured flags back to the marches of the labour movement and the Peace Partisans as early as the 1950s, when peace and solidarity among peoples were considered foundational values.

These movements took inspiration from the World Peace Flag, composed of seven colours and the planet earth against a background of a starry sky, designed by the U.S. Methodist pastor James Van Kirk in 1912. Capitini took up the historical legacy of this symbol and defined its current appearance together with Maria Francesca Siciliani, young daughter of friends of Capitini: she purchased and sewed the clothes together with the other women of the committee. At the end ofthe march Capitini gave the flag to the girl, that flag is still kept in Perugia and displayed exceptionally for this exhibtion.