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# Buenos Aires Province (Argentina)

## Provincia de Buenos Aires

Last modified: 2026-04-04 by rob raeside
Keywords: buenos aires | provincia de buenos aires | sun (raising) | girasol | sunflower | cogwheel | federalism | contest | school | capitán sarmiento |
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image by Francisco Gregoric, 27 April 2006

- Description of the flag
  - Flag Law
- 1997 original flag variant
- Court case against the provincial flag

- 1991 first official provincial flag

See also:

- Subdivisions of Buenos Aires Province
- Historical State of Buenos Aires naval flags (1852-1861)
- Buenos Aires City
- Province of Buenos Aires Government flags
- Argentina
- Argentine subdivisions (Clickable map)

Other sites:

- Province of Buenos Aires Government official website
  Reported by Francisco Gregoric 27 Apr 2006

## Description of the flag

The Buenos Aires Province Law 11997 approved the flag. It was chosen in a contest in which 270 000 youngsters of ages 12-18 took part during 2 years, supported by specialists and parents, there were 81 525 proposals, of which 32 were selected from all 16 regions along 1995-1996, of which 4 were selected by a jury to be voted by 2 000 000 students on August 12th 1997, and the winner is... The flag designed by the boys of Schools Matheu Gelicich and Faustino Sarmiento [of Capitán Sarmiento District], chosen by 1 500 000 voters.
Santiago Dotor, 15 June 1999

According official information of the Province of Buenos Aires Government, the internal parts of the provincial flag have the following meaning:
The brightness of the sun and the wreath of laurel as symbols of the Glory of the Province are sustained by the economy and production represented in the cogwheel.
The horizon line is red and stands for the federalist spirit. The upper sky blue stripe stands for the sky and the lower green stripe stands for the wealth of the fields.
The flag of the Province of Buenos Aires has a horizontal line that divides the total area in two oblong segments of equal dimensions.
In these two plain areas, the immensity of the sky and the land of the province is suggested separated by the infinite horizon expressed by a red line, characteristic color of Argentine Federalism.
The upper stripe is blue and represents the sky, the water of the sea and rivers of the province, while the lower stripe is green of the plains. The yellow color opens outwards forming a sunflower's below the horizon line with yellow petals and a red center. The central symbol its made by a half sun and a half sunflower located in the central nucleus of the emblem, surrounded by a semi circle of green laurels.
It was created by Law 11997 of 12/08/97. Published on 26/09/97 in the Official Bulletin 23446- Reg. by decree No.3.991/97
The oath to the flag was taken on November 14, 1997 in the Luján Basilica
quoted by Francisco Gregoric and Gus Tracchia, 27 Apr 2006

### Flag Law

LEY 11997
EL SENADO Y CAMARA DE DIPUTADOS DE LA PROVINCIA DE BUENOS AIRES SANCIONAN CON FUERZA DE
L E Y
ARTICULO 1°.- Se adopta como Bandera de la Provincia de Buenos Aires la elegida por los alumnos de los establecimientos de Educación General Básica y de Educación Especial de Gestión oficial y privada, a cargo de la Dirección General de Cultura y Educación, en el marco de la Jornada de Reflexión sobre IDENTIDAD BONAERENSE, llevada a cabo el día 12 de agosto de 1997.
ARTICULO 2°.- La Bandera de la Provincia de Buenos Aires tendrá el siguiente diseño:

1) Forma rectangular.
2) Campo dividido en dos fajas apaisadas de iguales dimensiones. La faja superior es azul, la inferior verde y dividiendo ambas, una línea horizontal roja.
3) En el centro un círculo compuesto por:
3.1. En el campo superior, un sol naciente amarillo.
3.2. En el campo inferior, la mitad inferior de un girasol amarillo de cinco (5) pétalos con un semicírculo rojo en su interior.
3.3. Como ornamentos exteriores del círculo:
3.3.1. En la faja superior y enmarcando al Sol, una media corona de laureles verdes.
3.3.2. En la faja inferior y enmarcando al girasol un medio engranaje azul de seis dientes.

ARTICULO 3°.- El Poder Ejecutivo reglamentará la presente ley en concordancia con la normativa vigente para el uso de la Bandera Nacional.
ARTICULO 4°.- El uso de la Bandera de la Provincia de Buenos Aires se hará en forma conjunta con el de la Bandera Nacional.
La rendición de honores en ceremonias oficiales se hará en forma exclusiva a la Bandera Nacional.
ARTICULO 5°.- Los agentes y funcionarios de los Poderes Legislativo, Ejecutivo y Judicial de la Administración Pública Provincial y Municipal, formularán promesa de lealtad a la Bandera de la Provincia de Buenos Aires.
ARTICULO 6°.- La presentación, bendición y promesa de lealtad a la Bandera, se realizará en un encuentro que será convocado por el Gobernador de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, en la ciudad de Luján, en el mes de noviembre del presente año.
ARTICULO 7°.- El Gobernador de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, convocará especialmente a los Diputados y Senadores provinciales, quienes reunidos en Asamblea formularán la promesa de lealtad dispuesta en el artículo 5.
La Asamblea, que se reunirá en el mes de noviembre del presente año, se regirá con las formalidades previstas para la Asamblea Legislativa.
ARTICULO 8°.- El Gobernador designará una Comisión integrada por los señores ex-Gobernadores Constitucionales de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, con el objeto de tomar promesa de lealtad a la Bandera de la Provincia, a los integrantes de los tres poderes del Gobierno Provincial, Intendentes Municipales, Presidentes de Concejos Deliberantes y Presidentes de Consejos Escolares.
La Comisión estará presidida por el Decano de los Señores ex-Gobernadores.
ARTICULO 9°.- Concluida la ceremonia en la que se presta promesa de lealtad, el Gobernador, el Vicegobernador y la Comisión de ex-Gobernadores izarán por primera vez la Bandera de la Provincia de Buenos Aires.
ARTICULO 10°.- Como finalización del encuentro, el Gobernador, el Vicegobernador y la Comisión de ex-Gobernadores suscribirán el Acta labrada con motivo de la ceremonia.
ARTICULO 11°.- Los funcionarios que no hayan formulado la promesa de lealtad, prevista en el artículo 5, deberán realizarla en un plazo que no excederá los treinta (30) días de la fecha de la ceremonia principal, ante el titular de sus organismos respectivos.
ARTICULO 12°.- La Bandera de la Provincia de Buenos Aires deberá colocarse en los despachos de los Senadores, Diputados, Jueces de la Provincia de Buenos Aires y funcionarios que determine el Poder Ejecutivo.
El Gobernador, los titulares de las Cámaras de Senadores y Diputados y el Presidente de la Suprema Corte de Justicia, adoptarán las medidas necesarias para su cumplimiento.
ARTICULO 13°.- Los Intendentes Municipales, Presidentes de Concejos Deliberantes y Presidentes de Consejos Escolares, dentro de los treinta (30) días de la ceremonia principal, deberán tomar la promesa de lealtad prevista en el artículo 5 a sus miembros, por medio de la fórmula que establezca el Poder Ejecutivo.
ARTICULO 14°.- Derógase cualquier otra norma que se oponga a la presente.
ARTICULO 15°.- Comuníquese al Poder Ejecutivo.

English Translation:

LAW 11997
THE SENATE AND THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE PROVINCE OF BUENOS AIRES DECREE WITH POWER OF
L A W
ARTICLE No. 1.- The flag chosen by the students of elementary and medium levels of public and private schools under the General Direction of Culture and Education, during the Days of Reflecting on IDENTITY OF BUENOS AIRES PROVINCE, made on August 12, 1997 will be adopted as the flag of the Province of Buenos Aires.
ARTICLE No. 2.- The Flag of the Province of Buenos Aires will have the following design:

1) Rectangular shape.
2) A field divided in two horizontal stripes of same size. The upper stripe is blue, the lower one green. A narrow horizontal red line separates both stripes.
3) At the center, a circle is shown formed by:
3.1. The upper half of the circle, a yellow raising sun.
3.2. In the lower half, a yellow sunflower of five (5) petals with a red semicircle inside.
3.3. As exterior ornaments of the circle:
3.3.1. In the upper stripe and framing the sun, a wreath of green laurels.
3.3.2. In the lower stripe and framing the sunflower a half blue cogwheel of six indentations.

ARTICLE No. 3.- The Executive Power will regulate the present law according to the present regulations already in existence for the National Flag.
ARTICLE No. 4.- The Flag of the Province of Buenos Aires will be used together with the National Flag.
In official ceremonies, the honors will be given to the National Flag only.
ARTICLE No. 5.- Government personnel and officials of the Legislative, Executive and Judicial Powers of the Province and Municipal Public Administration, will take an oath of loyalty to the Flag of the Province of Buenos Aires.
ARTICLE No. 6.- The presentation, blessing and the loyalty oath to the Flag, will be made in a special gathering called by the Governor of the Province of Buenos Aires in the City of Luján in November of the present year.
ARTICLE No. 7.- The Governor of the Province of Buenos Aires will make a special call to the provincial Deputies and Senators to convene on a special session to take the oath of loyalty referred in article no. 5.
This special session will meet in the month of November of the present year and it will be performed observing the formalities regulated by the Legislature.
ARTICLE No. 8.- The Governor will appoint a committee made of former Constitutional Governors of the Province of Buenos Aires, in order to take the oath of loyalty to the Flag of the Province, to the members of the three governmental powers of the Provincial Government, Mayors of Municipalities, Presidents of Municipal Legislatures and Presidents of School Councils.
The Committee will be presided by the Dean of former Governors.
ARTICLE No. 9.- Once the oath ceremony of loyalty conclude, the Governor, the Vice-Governor and the Committee of former Governors will raise for the first time the Flag of the Province of Buenos Aires.
ARTICLE No. 10.- Finishing this act, the Governor, the Vice-governor and the Committee of former Governors will sign the Proclamation of this ceremony.
ARTICLE No. 11.- The government officials that have not taken the oath of loyalty regulated in article no. 5, must take it no longer than thirty (30) days from the date of the main ceremony in presence of the head of its respective agencies.
ARTICLE No. 12.- The Flag of the Province of Buenos Aires will be placed in the offices of Senators, Deputies [Representatives], Judges of the Province of Buenos Aires and government officials determined by the Executive Power.
The Governor, the head of Senators and Deputies [Representatives] and the President of the [provincial] Supreme Court of Justice, will take the necessary actions for the fulfillment of this point.
ARTICLE No. 13.- Municipal Mayors, Presidents of Municipal Legislatures and Presidents of School Councils, have to take the oath described in article no. 5 during the next thirty (30) days after the main ceremony to its member, following the formula established by the Executive Power.
ARTICLE No. 14.- Any other norms contrary to the present is invalid.
ARTICLE No. 15.- Notify the Executive Power.

Law translated by Francisco Gregoric and Gus Tracchia, 27 April 2006.

## 1997 original flag variant

image by Francisco Gregoric, 27 February 2006

The design that won the voting in 1997 had the laurels with their leafs united to the stems [see a photo at a 1997 article in the Clarín newspaper]. However it could be seen in the Buenos Aires provincial flags used nowadays that the leafs and stems appear separated. This could be seen even in the official information about the flag in the provincial government website.
Francisco Gregoric, 27 April 2006

## Court case against the provincial flag

The "Nova" news agency reported on 5 December 2008 the end of a court case against the flag of the Province of Buenos Aires. The administrative court stated that there was no reason to suppress this flag. Had the complaint being accepted, the flag should have been removed from thousands of official buildings and shields. As far as I understand the complex elements given in the text, the plaintiff claimed that the Province formerly used the national flag as its flag and should not have adopted a new flag.
Ivan Sache, 07 December 2008

## 1991 first official provincial flag

In November 1990 a committee was organized to study the possibility of adopting a flag for the Buenos Aires Province.
In September 6, 1991 a flag was officially adopted as flag for the Buenos Aires Province by Decree No. 2932. This was made during the last months of the government of Governor Antonio Cafiero. Although the flag was legally adopted, it was never used. On December 1991, Antonio Cafiero left the provincial government to be replaced by Eduardo Duhalde. This first flag was forgotten and never used, but from a legal point of view it was the flag of the Buenos Aires Province until 1997 when a new bill officially nullified the previous flag by Article No. 14 of the 11997 present Flag Law.
The 1991 flag design was a horizontal triband of light blue/white/light blue, like the Argentine National Flag, but it had a half cogwheel and a wreath of wheat instead of a sun in the central white stripe.
Francisco Gregoric, 27 April 2006

Other sites:

- Official information about the Buenos Aires Province flag in the Government website
- Buenos Aires Province Flag Law No.11997 (at the official government website).
- Jaume Ollé’s page about Buenos Aires Province flags (complete report with images of all the proposals for the constest)
- Capitán Sarmiento, "cradle" of the Buenos Aires Province Flag
- Court case against the provincial flag at the website of "Agencia Nova"

Other sources:

- [joL97b] Jaume Ollé i Casals (1997): Buscando la bandera bonaerense [published in Banderas No.65, December 1997]
- [pzz02] Alberto Rubén Perazzo (2002): Nuestras Banderas - Vexilología Argentina (second edition)