What ship is depicted on Saint Pierre and Miquelon's unofficial local flag?

The ship depicted on Saint Pierre and Miquelon’s unofficial local flag is the Grande Hermine.

The ship appears as a yellow sailing vessel on a blue field. It represents the Grande Hermine, the vessel associated with French explorer Jacques Cartier’s arrival at Saint-Pierre on 15 June 1536. The ship is also central to the collectivity’s coat of arms, from which the unofficial flag was adapted.

Saint Pierre and Miquelon has no official flag separate from France’s tricolour. The locally used design was created by André Paturel in the 1980s, inspired by the official coat of arms. Along the hoist, it displays symbols connected with the Basque Country, Brittany, and Normandy—the principal ancestral regions represented in the islands’ population.

The flag is nevertheless widely used by residents, local officials, and civilian vessels. Its status is often described as unofficial or “quasi-legal,” so it should not be confused with an officially legislated territorial flag. The ship is the Grande Hermine, not another famous vessel from the age of exploration.