Since astronomical/astrological symbol for Mars is used to represent male gender, doubled symbol is often used to represent male homosexuality and is included as such into the Unicode since version 4.1.0 and assigned the code point U+26A3. Tomislav Todorović, 21 June 2015 Source: Unicode Consortium website - code chart for Miscellaneous Symbols block in version 4.1.0 (in PDF format)
This flag was also used at the Uganda Pride 2012. Tomislav Todorović, 30 August 2015
Rainbow flag with double Mars symbol over all
image by Tomislav Todorović, 21 June 2015
Flag with large double Mars symbol over all in white, exhibited together with several other sexual orientation flags, can be seen here and here. A photo of the flag, taken in Washington, DC on 2013-03-26, can be found here. On these flags, the individual Mars symbols are interlaced and fimbriated black. Tomislav Todorović, 21 June 2015
Since astronomical/astrological symbol for Venus is used to represent female gender, doubled symbol is often used to represent female homosexuality and is included as such into the Unicode since version 4.1.0 and assigned the code point U+26A2. Tomislav Todorović, 21 June 2015 Source: Unicode Consortium website - code chart for Miscellaneous Symbols block in version 4.1.0 (in PDF format)
This flag was also used at the Uganda Pride 2012. Tomislav Todorović, 30 August 2015
Rainbow flag with double Venus symbol over all
image by Tomislav Todorović, 21 June 2015
Flag with large double Venus symbol over all in white, exhibited together with several other sexual orientation flags, can be seen here and here. A photo of the flag, taken in Columbus, Ohio on 2014-06-20, can be found here. On these flags, the individual Venus symbols are interlaced and fimbriated black. Tomislav Todorović, 21 June 2015
image by António Martins, 30 March 2005 (labrys image from here)
A labrys (double-headed axe) is another lesbian symbol and is sometimes included, usually centered on the field of the rainbow flag. Steve Kramer, 6 May 1996
The color pattern was with red at the top and the symbol was in deep pink, set close to the hoist and centered vertically, occupying about a half of the flag width. Tomislav Todorović, 1 August 2021
The color pattern was with red at the top again, but the symbol was black here, with a different position—centered horizontally, its circle being centered vertically. The shape of strokes differed a bit as well. Tomislav Todorović, 8 May 2022
This gay flag variant of the Rainbow Flag has a circle in the center containing a natural (not map) world globe showing America, Europe, and Africa. Jaume Ollé, 5 and 24 June 2000 Source:
Communication from José Luís Cepero
I think by "natural" he means a space-eye photo of Earth like on this flag. David Kendall, 31 March 2005
image by Tomislav Todorović, 25 October 2014
Another variant is charged with the globe on dark blue square canton, which occupies half of the flag width, thus repeating the design of The Authentic Earth Flag (Earth Day Flag),although the relative size of the globe is much larger on the gay flag canton than on the Earth Day Flag, probably in order to make it not too small to be recognizable. The flag was seen at the Atlanta Pride, on 2007-06-24, its photos being available here and here. The canton might look black or almost black on the photos, as very dark blue color may look in the shadow, but the rainbow colors also look darker for the same reason. Tomislav Todorović, 25 October 2014
Chicago held its Northalsted Market Days this weekend, the largest of Chicago's summer street fairs. There were a lot of flags to see. The most prevelent was the gay Rainbow flag in several different varieties (including one with a smiley face on it) and a few other gay flags (since this is the gay mecca of the city). Steve Stringfellow, 10 August 1998
While the flag is not frequently seen, the size and shape of smiley may actually vary. An example of different smiley is from the Tokyo Rainbow Pride Parade 2015.[1] Tomislav Todorović, 21 May 2020 Source:
[1] — https://www.flickr.com/photos/tokyofashion/16656598854/
image by M. Schmöger, 26 August 2001
This is the rainbow flag with a cowboy hat for "gay cowboys." This was created by "Cowboy Frank." See CowboyFrank.net. M. Schmöger, 26 August 2001
image by Tomislav Todorović, 7 September 2014
The name of its creator, also known as "Cowboy Frank," is Frank Harrell. The story about the flag creation can be found at his website. There is another variant, created by the webmaster of a site which was dealing, among other things, with the flags representing different sexual orientations; according to its author, the flag design was approved by Frank Harrell in 2009. In our communication from November 2012, Mr Harrell confirmed me that he did approve the new flag. The designer's motivation was to create a flag which, unlike the original one, could be produced without the screen printing. In order to achieve that, he placed the hat, which kept its usual color (described as "tan"), on a dark brown canton, which symbolizes earth and nature. The band surrounding the hat, not very distinguishable on the original flag, was made much wider and also painted in dark brown, to symbolize cowboys' "perpetual mindfulness of the earth." The original description of the flag can be found at its creator's website (in PDF format). Tomislav Todorović, 7 September 2014
This is a variant of the rainbow flag with a black heart and black bones (like in the Jolly Roger). Seen at the Christopher Street Day Parade 2001 in Munich; it seemed to me home-made. M. Schmöger, 24 August 2001
Rainbow flags are sometimes charged with the peace sign. The simplest of such flags, charged with a white peace sign in center, was photographed in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on 12 January 2008. Tomislav Todorović, 28 May 2015
image by Tomislav Todorović, 28 May 2015
During the weekly anti-Islam protests which have been organized in Dresden from October 2014 to February 2015 by the Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West (Patriotische Europ er gegen die Islamisierung des Abendlandes, PEGIDA), a rainbow flag with a white peace sign on a purple canton (same shade as the bottom stripe) was seen sometimes, with the word PEGIDA sprayed over it in black - the only detail of the flag that looked hand-made. Whether the flag was made for PEGIDA or had existed before the protests, is not quite clear (the sprayed inscription might suggest the latter - a way to "adopt" the design). Regardless of that, its use was clearly in accordance with the movement's intention to deny the accusations for promoting ultra-rightist extremism and claims that they were opposing Islamic extremism only. The photos of this flag can be found here (image) and here (image). Tomislav Todorović, 28 May 2015
While all the above examples show this flag as used alone, there are also examples of its use together with the undefaced rainbow flag. Two flags were hoisted together at the Easton Mountain resort in Greenwich, New York in June 2010, and on a building at Main Street, Bar Harbor, Maine, in August 2015.
As a pacifist symbol, the flags was used, together with several other pacifist flags, by the members of Martha's Vineyard Peace Council in 2008, during the July 4th parade in the town of Oak Bluffs on Martha's Vineyard island. A gallery of photos from the event is available here. Tomislav Todorović, 16 January 2016
![[Rainbow with double Mars symbol]](../images/q/qq-rb2m1.gif)
![[Rainbow flag with double Mars symbol]](../images/q/qq-rb2m2.gif)
![[Rainbow w/ labrys]](../images/q/qq-rbly.gif)
![[Rainbow with transgender symbol]](../images/q/qq-rbtg.gif)
![[Rainbow with transgender symbol]](../images/q/qq-rbtg1.gif)
![[Rainbow flag with globe]](../images/q/qq-rbg.gif)
![[Rainbow flag with globe]](../images/q/qq-rb-g2.gif)
![[Rainbow flag with smiley face]](../images/s/sex-rb8).gif)
![[Cowboy hat rainbow flag]](../images/q/qq-rbco.gif)
![[Cowboy Rainbow flag]](../images/q/qq-rbco2.gif)
![[Pirate rainbow flag]](../images/q/qq-rbbo.gif)
image by M. Schmöger, 24 August 2001
![[Rainbow flag with inscription]](../images/q/qq-rb-ins.jpg)
