The cookie is used by cdn services like CloudFare to identify individual clients behind a shared IP address and apply security settings on a per-client basis. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. In the middle of the last century, lesbian women would give violets to women as an indication of ‘sapphic desire’. The poet Sappho described her lover as wearing a garland of violets.
Violets were another early lesbian symbol, dating back to c.600 BC. These women would fight as men did and are seen as a symbol of feminism. The labrys is also featured within Greek and Roman mythology, associated with Laphria, Artemis and Determis. The axe-like weapon was frequently seen in depictions of women warriors like Amazons. The double axe – known as labrys – represents the strength and feminism of homosexual women and was adopted into the lesbian community in the 1970s. Under the Nazi regime, women who did not conform to Nazi ideals would be sent to concentration camps and marked with an upside down black triangle badge for identification and men would be forced to wear the same in pink. It contains an inverted black triangle that repurposes a Nazi symbol used during World War ll.
In 1999, gay graphic designer, Sean Campbell created one of the first lesbian flags.
