Bhutan - Current

The national flag of Bhutan consists of a white dragon over a yellow and orange background. The flag is divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner, making two triangles. The upper triangle is yellow and the lower triangle is orange. The dragon is centred along the dividing line, facing away from the hoist side.
This flag, with minor variations, has been in use since the 19th century. It reached its current form in 1960.

Bhutan is a Buddhist state where power is shared by the king and government. The country's name in the local dialect means Land of the Dragon. In Bhutan, thunder is believed to be the voices of dragons roaring. In about 1200, a monastery was set up called the Druk (Thunder Dragon) with a sect called the Drukpas, named after it. The name and the emblem of the dragon have been associated with Bhutan ever since. The dragon on the flag is white to symbolize purity. The dragon grasps jewels, representing wealth, in its claws. The snarling mouth represents the strength of the male and female deities protecting the country[7]. The two colours of the flag, divided diagonally, represent spiritual and temporal power within Bhutan. The saffron yellow field symbolizes the secular monarchy, while the orange represents the Drukpas monasteries and Buddhist religion.

The flag is one of the few national flags to feature orange as a prominent colour, and one of only two national flags to depict a dragon, the other being the flag of Wales. [1]

There has been some dispute over the colours used on the flag. The suggested colours range from; saffron yellow & orange [2], orange & red-orange [3], saffron yellow & red-orange [4], to orange & maroon [5].

The colours are given by the Flag Institute of Great Britain as saffron over orange-red.Estimated as Pantone 116c and Pantone 165c [6].

[1] Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Bhutan
[2] Ultimate Pocket Flags of the World, DK Publishing Inc., (1997)
[3] Whitney Smith, Flags Through the Ages and Across the World, McGraw-Hill Book Co.: New York(1975)
[4] Armand du Payrat, Album des pavillons nationaux et des marques distinctive, S.H.O.M. (Service Hydrographique et Océanographique de la Marine): Brest (1995)
[5] Christian Fogd Pedersen, Alverdens flag i farver, Politikens Forlag: København (1970)
[6] Southworth, Flags of the World - http://www.fotw.net/flags/bt.html
[7] Ultimate Pocket Flags of the World, DK Publishing Inc., (1997)