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The Lion and Sun Emblem

Flag of Reza Shah from 1925–1964, 1:3 ratio

National flag of Iran, 1964-1979. Basic three colours with Lion and Sun, 4:7 ratio

The flag of the Red Lion and Sun Society, the Iranian equivalent of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent societies.

The Flag of Agha Mohammad Khan

A coin with the name of Nasser-al-Din Shah Qajar, with the Lion and the Sun symbol

The Lion and Sun Motif (Shir o Khorshid, شیر و خورشید‎ ​) is one of the better-known symbols of Iran and has a long tradition. In a form similar to the one of the present-day, the emblem is attested from the early 15th century onwards.

Towards the end of the Sassanid period (224–651) a "national flag" had emerged, called the Derafsh-e Kavian "the standard of the kay(s)" (i.e., kavis "kings") or "of Kava."^[1] The banner consisted of a star (the akotar) on a purple field, accompanied by red, gold and purple streamers. The term akotar was significant since the star also represented "fortune", and the capture and destruction of the banner on a field of battle implied the loss of the battle (and hence the loss of fortune).^[2]

As the symbol of the Sassanid state,^[3] the Derafsh-e Kavian was irrevocably tied to the concept of Eranshah and hence with the concept of Iranian nationhood. Thus, in 867, when the Saffarid "Yaqub Layt 'claimed the inheritance of the kings of Persia' and sought 'to revive their glory,' a poem written on his behalf sent to the Abbasid caliph said: 'With me is the Derafsh-e Kavian, through which I hope to rule the nations'."^[2] Although no evidence that Yaqub Layt ever re-recreated such a flag survives, star imagery in banners remained popular until the ascendance of the lion and sun symbol.

The use of the lion and sun symbol is first attested in a miniature painting dated to 1423. The painting, which is of a scene from Mongol conquest (Timurid dynasty, 1370–1506), depicts several horsemen that approach the walled city of Nishapur. One of the horsemen carries a banner that bears a lion passant with a rising sun on its back. The pole is tipped with a crescent moon. By the time of the Safavids (1501-1722), and the subsequent unification of Iran as a single state, the lion and sun had become a familiar sign, appearing on copper coins, on banners, and on works of art.

It is "clear that, although various alams and banners were employed by the Safavids [...] the lion and sun symbol had become by the time of Shah Abbas the recognized emblem of Persia." "The association may originally have been based on a learned interpretation of the Shahnama's references to the 'the Sun of Iran' and 'the Moon of the Turanians/Turks'."^[2] (cf: the "Roman" - i.e. Byzantine - king as the "Moon of the West" in the symbolism section below). For the Safavids, the Shahnama was no doubt the better two of the references, and "since the crescent moon had been adopted as the dynastic and ultimately national emblem of the Ottoman sultans [...], who were the new sovereigns of 'Rum,' the Safavids of Persia, needing to have a dynastic and national emblem of their own, chose the lion and sun motif."^[2]

The sword was added in the 16th century. The emblem remained the official symbol of Iran until 1979 revolution, when the "Lion & Sun" symbol was - by decree - removed from public spaces and government organisations and replaced by the present-day Coat of arms of Iran. Consequently, the emblem is today considered representative of the era prior to the foundation of the Islamic Republic and remains tied to ideas of Iranian nationalism.

A "vast amount of literary and archaeological evidence [...] demonstrates that from the 12th century the ancient zodiacal sign of the sun in the house of Leo gained popularity as an emblematic figure [...] probably to exemplify the ruler's power."^[2] Indeed, the use of light imagery as a sign of kingship descends from pre-historic times: The name of the mythical Jamshid, who in Iranian tradition is the prototype ruler and from whom many dynasts claimed descent, derives from the Avestan language expression Yima Xsšaēta, "radiant Yima", just as Khorshid, the Persian language name of (the divinity of) the sun, derives from hvarə-xsšaēta, "radiant sun". The sun had always been associated with Persian royalty: Iranian tradition recalls that aforementioned Kayanids had a golden sun as their emblem. From the Greek historians of classical antiquity it is known that "a crystal image" of the sun adorned the royal tent of Darius III, that the Arsacid banner was adorned with the sun, and that the Sassanid standards had a red ball symbolizing the sun. The Byzantine chronicler Malalas records that the salutation of a letter from the "Persian king, the Sun of the East," was addressed to the "Roman Caesar, the Moon of the West". The Turanian/Turkish king Afrasab is recalled as saying: "I have heard from wise men that when the Moon of the Turks rises up it will be harmed by the Sun of the Iranians."^[2] The sun was always imagined as male, and in some banners a figure of a male replaces the symbol of the sun. In others, a male figure accompanies the sun.

Similarly, the lion too has always had a close association with Persian kingship. The garments and throne decorations of the Achaemenid kings were embroidered with lion motifs. The crown of the half-Persian Seleucid king Antiochus I was adorned with a lion. In the investiture inscription of Ardashir I at Naqsh-e Rustam, the breast armour of the king is decorated with lions. Further, in some Iranian dialects the word for king (shah) is pronounced as sher, homonymous with the word for lion. Islamic, Turkish, and Mongol influences also stressed the symbolic association of the lion and royalty. The earliest evidence for the use of a lion on a standard comes from the Shahnameh, which noted that the feudal house of Godarz (presumably a family of Parthian or Sassanid times) adopted a golden lion for its devices.

• Flags of Iran
• Flags of Imperial Iran
• Coat of arms of Iran

1. ^ Khaleghi-Motlagh, Djalal. (1996). "Derafš-e Kāvīān". Encyclopedia Iranica 7. Cosa Mesa: Mazda.
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Shahbazi, A. Shapur. (2001). "Flags". Encyclopedia Iranica 10. Cosa Mesa: Mazda.
3. ^ Shahbazi, A. Shapur. (1996). "Derafš". Encyclopedia Iranica 7. Cosa Mesa: Mazda.

• The Banner device from the miniature painting dated to 1423.
• Drouville's depiction of the Persian flag in the early 19th century.
• Standard (with sword) of the Persian delegation during Mohammad-Reza Beg's visit to Versailles in August 1715.