Sun of May

The Sol de Mayo (German: Maisonne, also called Inkasonne) is one of the national symbols of the countries Argentina and Uruguay. It is used in the design of the respective national flags and coats of arms.

The origins of this sun symbol, which shows a sun disk with a face surrounded by sun rays, are complex. On the one hand, the name can be traced back to Argentina's May Revolution in 1810 (May 18-25), which marked the beginning of the process of independence from Spain of the two present-day countries, which at that time were grouped together as the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. But the real origin lies in Inca mythology, where it symbolized the son Inti of the divine creator Viracocha.

The sun used in the flag design of Argentina has 16 straight and also 16 flaming rays of the sun, which are arranged around it. In the Uruguayan flag, on the other hand, there are eight alternating rays.