۱۲ پرچم تاریخی ایران — از عصر مفرغ تا پرچم ایران آزاد
Iran's flag history spans over 4,400 years, from the earliest known standard found at the Bronze Age site of Shahdad (c. 2400 BC) to the modern day. Each flag tells the story of an era, a dynasty, and a people's evolving identity.
Key historical flags include: the Shahdad Standard (world's oldest known battle standard), the Achaemenid Eagle (carried by Cyrus the Great's armies), the Derafsh Kaviani (legendary banner of resistance), Safavid and Qajar Lions & Suns, the Constitutional tricolor (1906), and the Pahlavi Lion & Sun with crown.
Today, the green-white-red tricolor with the Lion and Sun has become the de facto flag of the Iranian freedom movement, waved at protests worldwide. It represents a return to Iran's pre-Islamic identity and the hope for a free, secular, democratic future.
The Shahdad Standard, discovered at the Bronze Age archaeological site of Shahdad in Kerman province, dates to approximately 2400 BC and is considered the oldest known battle standard in the world.
Iranian protesters and the freedom movement use the green-white-red tricolor with the Lion and Sun emblem — the pre-1979 national flag that represents Iran's secular, pre-Islamic identity and the Pahlavi era.