Prior National Flags and Coat of Arms
The original flag of Upper Volta, adopted at independence, contained three horizontal stripes of black, white, and red. These colours represented the three major tributaries of the Volta River, which flows south through the country: the Black Volta, the White Volta and the Red Volta.
From 1984 until 1997, the official Burkina Faso coat of arms used a revolutionary central crest featuring a scythe crossed with a Soviet AK-47 assault rifle, along with an open book symbolising the importance of education and the study of revolutionary principles. A lower banner declared in French, "Motherland or Death, We Shall Overcome".
Read more about this topic: Flag Of Burkina Faso
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