Sun of May
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Sun of May (Spanish: Sol de Mayo) is one of the national emblems of Argentina and Uruguay, and it is featured on the countries' flags. It is a representation of the Inca sun god Inti, with sixteen straight and sixteen flaming interpolated rays irradiated from a human faced sun as depicted on the flag of Argentina, and eight each as depicted on the flag of Uruguay.
The denomination "of May" is a reference to the May Revolution which took place in the week from the 18th to the 25th of May, 1810, which marked the beginning of independence from Spain of the countries that then formed the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata.
Sun of May of the flag of Argentina, 1818 |
Sun of May of the flag of Uruguay, 1828 |