What red cap appears above the lion on Paraguay's reverse flag seal?

A red Phrygian cap appears above the lion on Paraguay’s reverse flag seal.

The reverse of Paraguay’s flag is not identical to its obverse, making the national flag exceptionally unusual. The obverse displays Paraguay’s national coat of arms, while the reverse carries the seal of the treasury. That reverse seal shows a yellow lion beneath a red Phrygian cap mounted on a pole, along with the motto “Paz y Justicia,” meaning “Peace and Justice.”

The Phrygian cap is a traditional symbol of liberty and revolutionary independence. On Paraguay’s treasury seal, it is associated with courage and the defense of freedom. The lion and cap therefore form a symbolic composition rather than decorative headwear.

Paraguay’s red-white-blue tricolor was formally adopted in 1842 and revised in 2013. The two-sided emblem design dates to the period associated with José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia, helping explain why the country’s flag has separate imagery on each side.