First PH flag unveiled again at Baguio museum

BAGUIO CITY—What is arguably the first Philippine flag was again unveiled here recently in all its fragile glory, drawing tears from war veterans and inspiring its custodians to reassert its legitimacy.

Honorato Aquino, lawyer of the Aguinaldo-Suntay family, said the old banner is the real flag which the late Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo raised in 1898 to declare the country’s independence from Spanish rule.

He said it was displayed during this year’s celebration of Flag Day here because Baguio has always been its home.

The Aguinaldo-Suntay family has been keeping the flag for Cristina Aguinaldo Suntay, the general’s daughter, who discovered the relic folded under Aguinaldo’s deathbed in 1964.

Although the National Historical Commission of the Philippines has not authenticated the flag, the family and many scholars believe it is genuine because its distinctive pale-yellow sun bears a golden face. The flag’s blue field also has a lighter hue compared to the dark blue field of the modern flag.

The phrase “Fuerzas Expedicionarias del Norte de Luzon” runs across one side of the flag, stitched with gold silk thread. The words “Libertad” and “Justicia” are stitched on the other side of the flag.

Aquino said the flag’s design “was made by General Aguinaldo himself in 1897, a year before they acknowledged making the flag in Hong Kong.”

But people who visit the Aquinaldo Museum on Happy Glen Loop here to view and reflect upon this flag every June 12 (Independence Day) have taken note of its deterioration.

The old flag’s existence was revealed in 1998 to coincide with the celebration of the centennial of Philippine Independence. The relic was put on display in the museum, inside a glass case in the center of a room filled with Aguinaldo’s belongings, including a wooden wheelchair and an old office desk.

A silk replica used to hang from the museum’s ceiling.

Nowadays, people could only view the flag in extremely dim light, aided by softly lit lamps and a small and heavily painted sun roof.

Emilio Aguinaldo Suntay III, the general’s great grandson, said the fabric has frayed so badly that its decay has become irreversible. He said experts, like those from the Smithsonian Institution, urged the family to keep the flag away from damp corridors and direct sunlight to prolong its life.

The city government commissioned contractors to build a fence around the Aguinaldo Museum to reinforce security there.

Aquino said the Philippine flag was unique because it is actually two flags—one for peace and one for war. If the flag is displayed with the blue side on top, it means the country is at peace. If it is displayed with the red side on top, it means the country is at war.