The Colour of the Argentinean Flag

摘要

One of the historical, recurrently discussed questions in Argentina and South America is related to the original colour of the Argentinean flag. In this paper, the colouring of one of the oldest preserved Argentinean flags, the flag of 1814 of the Temple of San Francisco, Province of Tucuma′n, was determined, which was ordered in a timely manner by the trustee and later first governor of the Province of Tucuma′n, Bernabe′ Ara′oz. The flag, made of silk, has inscriptions in a yellow colour due to crocoite, and the presence of lapis lazuli pigment in its upper and lower parts conveys a blue tonality to the year of its origin. Moreover, due to its homogeneous distribution found on the analysed samples a preservation work by means of a Sn containing compound might be inferred in this study, which used spectroscopy and chemistry to solve a singular historical question.