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Democratic Republic of Congo - Flag Details

by Željko Heimer, 23 May 2004

Flagdescription
Construction sheet
Flag reconstruction sheet
Same shade of blue as in 1960?
Same star as in 1960?
Premature flagchange

See also:

Flagdescription

Blue is Pantone 286 C, yellow 109 C.
The space between upper point of the first upper star and edge of the flag is 1/2 of the size of one small star. Same for the space betwen left point of a small star to the hoist. Space between right part of a smal star to the fly flag is 9 times size of a small star. Great star is three times the size of a small star.
It seems that the flag must be divided in 10,5 horizontal parts: first one (0,5) is blue, second (1) is the star colum; following (3) blue, following (3) central star; and last one (3) blue.
And horizontally 19 parts: 1 for upper blue, 2 for each star star, and 1 for each space between stars.
This is according to the sheet construction made by Pierre Palac for the Congo government and published in Flag Report 6.
Jaume Ollé, 20 February 2001

Construction sheet

by Jaume Ollé, 22 February 2001

Above is construction sheet from Palac, translated from French to Spanish. Pierre Palac is a graphic designer (and vex fan) working for a international organization in Paris. He was asked by the CDR embassy in Paris for draw the sheet for manufacturers. If I don't remember wrong a lot of flags were made and sent to Congo according his drawing. Unafortunately sheet was drawn according the Palac work system. When sheet was published in Flag Report #6 was under the following notes:

"Image based on the official construction table accomplished by Pierre Palac by assignment of the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, through the Embassy in Paris, politely transmitted by the own author 16 December 1997. Phrases translated from french to spanish. Accordant accomplished image to the graphic and with the established Pantone tones (blue 286 C, yellow 109 C)"

Jaume Ollé, 22 February 2001

My informations on Congo DR flags:
the dark shade of blue had been fixed by a South African (if I remember correctly) manufacturer in lack of official shades. So there are (or were) no official colour specifications. [BTW: Another South African manufacturer even made the (later CDR) flags with diagonal stripe (in sky blue).] AP reported in May 1997 that "more than 100 flags have been send to Congo". The photograph shot in that firm showed the blue-yellow-red flag of Congo-Kinshasa, the blue being about Pantone 292.
All photos we know show different colourshades, where the later photos have a quite similar lighter blue.
Flag report's construction sheet may have been done for the government, but I doubt that it was adopted, as too many difficulties are produced in that specification.
The AFF would give for the blue pantone 292 or 299 or 300. Someone mentioned that shade of blue in Congo's flag is skyblue. Pantone 286 is no sky blue at all, you may agree. But 285 comes closer to a sky blue ;-). An official internet site of Congo DR showed the flag light blue at http://www.congonline.com/Politiq/PolDrapeaux.htm but slightly darker than on FOTW Congo-historic, the big star is in the center of the flag.
Ralf Stelter, AFF, 22 February 2001

I have to add that the congonline.com flags are taken from http://home.wxs.nl/~marksens/descr/zr.htm (site is closed, ed.)
Sadly here an official website is decorated with unconfirmed illustrations. But I think Mark's interpretation of the new cd flag is quite good.
Ralf Stelter, AFF, 22 February 2001

Regarding the above "spec sheet": The flag of Congo DR is one flag made of one cloth and is one single piece. The six small stars are part of the field as is the large star, not a separate part of the flag, as for example the hoist stripes of Belarus or Khakassia. So the large star has to be in the center of the flag! At least optically. Stars are usually desribed by circles, not by squares. The sheet took squares, so the large star is not only off-centered to the fly, but also to the bottom (looks like the small stars want to get rid of it ;-) ). The diameter of the large star is half the width of the flag says the specification data we have, and the small stars are 1/3 of the large star. If you follow these informations a very different design than this "spec sheet" will result - and I guess there is nothing more than we have.
Ralf Stelter, 27 February 2001

Flag reconstruction sheet

by Ralf Stelter, 27 Feb 2001, after dubious official material

Here I add for the first Congo DR flag, drawn after "specifications" which I made from the infos about Congo DR the AFF has.
It is not official, but only my work. Older photographs show the flag quite similar to these specifications, newer photographs do not. So here are some facts about the flag we collected to construct a specification sheet which is not official but is quite reliable in heraldic, vexillological and aesthetical opinions. The result is a flag that even the government of Congo DR might accept:

1) the colour is defined as blue for the sky
2) the large star is 1/2 of the flag's height
3) the small stars are 1/3 of the large one
The result is a quite strange arrangement of the small stars as they are too close together.
4) Someone defined the blue as Pantone 286. One source even gives Reflex Blue.

A) Early photographs show a flag with a dark blue cloth and small stars close together.
B) The Congo DR website shows a light blue flag from the very beginning.
C) Later photographs show a lighter shade of blue and the small stars a bit smaller than before.

0) So the first specifications published about the flag might either have been official or were made after photographs.
00) The design of the flag might have been changed some day.
000) A vexillologist who has to "reconstruct" a flag should remember aesthetical, optical and heraldic rules to come close to the original but unknown design. Regarding every source he can find. And that are photographs, for example. Websites must be handled with care (who made it, how correct is the info in general, how old are the pages).
Photographs must be judged on several aspects: What is the light the flag is photographed. Cloudy sky makes colours appear dull and dark, flashlight and digital cameras rise the contrast of colours, so they seem bright and occasionally darker than they are, etc.
What kind are the flags shown? Decoration, table flags, official flags, official occasions (swearing in, funeral...), unofficial events (olympics, soccer...). This question leads to the question who might have manufactured the flag. A printer around the corner? A talented graphic artist? A firm who does not know more than me? A factory that is specialized on flags? etc.
Ralf Stelter, 27 February 2001

Same shade of blue as in 1960?

All photos I have seen on TV and in the newspapers show the flag is true to the 1960 model except in color of the background, which in the 1960 m