What book appears on the flag of the Pitcairn Islands?

The Bible appears on the flag of the Pitcairn Islands. It is shown within the territory’s coat of arms, displayed on the fly of a British Blue Ensign.

The Bible is part of a shield that also contains an anchor associated with HMS Bounty. Pitcairn’s population is largely descended from the Bounty mutineers and Tahitian women who settled on the island after the 1789 mutiny. Christianity became an important part of the island’s history, and the Bible on the arms symbolizes that religious heritage.

The Pitcairn coat of arms was granted by royal warrant on November 4, 1969. The flag itself was granted on April 2, 1984, and first flown during a visit by Governor Richard Stratton in May of that year. Other symbols on the arms include a wheelbarrow and a branch of the local miro tree, reflecting agriculture and island craftsmanship.

The Bible is not a separate plain book placed directly on the blue field. It appears as a detailed emblem inside the coat of arms, which is why the flag can be confused with other British territorial flags. Pitcairn is a British Overseas Territory in the southern Pacific Ocean.