The Stella d'Italia ("Star of Italy"), popularly known as Stellone d'Italia ("Great Star of Italy"),[1] is a five-pointed white star, which has symbolized Italy for many centuries. It is the oldest national symbol of Italy, since it dates back to Graeco-Roman mythology[2] when Venus, associated with the West as an evening star, was adopted to identify the Italian peninsula. From an allegorical point of view, the Stella d'Italia metaphorically represents the shining destiny of Italy.[3]
In the early 16th century it began to be frequently associated with Italia turrita, the national personification of the Italian peninsula. The Stella d'Italia was adopted as part of the emblem of Italy in 1947, where it is superimposed on a steel cogwheel, all surrounded by an oak branch and an olive branch.
- ^ "I simboli della Repubblica – L'emblema" (in Italian). Retrieved 2 February 2016.
- ^ Rossi 2014, p. 38.
- ^ Bazzano 2011, p. 7.