Labrys Lesbian Flag

The labrys lesbian flag was designed by graphic designer Sean Campbell in 1999. It's purple, with an inverted black triangle and a white labrys, a double-headed axe, at its centre. Each element is a piece of lesbian history. The labrys was associated in legend with the Amazons and was adopted by lesbian feminists in the 1970s as a symbol of strength and self-sufficiency. The black triangle was the badge the Nazis used to mark "asocial" women in concentration camps, a group that included lesbians. Like the pink triangle, it was later reclaimed. The violet background recalls the poet Sappho of Lesbos, who wrote of women wearing violets. It's less common than the newer orange and pink flag, but it's still flown by people who value its feminist history.

What the colours mean

	Purple / violet	Violets, linked to the poet Sappho and lesbian history
	Black triangle	Reclaimed from the badge used to mark women in Nazi concentration camps
	White labrys	The double-headed axe, associated with the Amazons and feminist strength

The colour bar above shows the flag's palette, not a drawing of it: chevrons, circles and symbols aren't shown. Meanings are as commonly given by the flag's designer or community, and some flags have more than one accepted reading.

Sources

• en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesbian_flag
• en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labrys#Modern_symbolism