We’ll take a look at the top ten most famous real pirate flags of all time. Many different pirates have used it, including “Black Sam” Bellamy, Christopher Condent and Edward England. The skull-and-crossbones design of the Jolly Roger flag has been used in many different styles and variations. This hourglass image was then picked up by other pirates and appears on several other flags. Wynn’s flag also used an hourglass image to symbolize that whoever saw it was running out of time. The earliest use of a black flag with a white skull and crossbones is credited to the French pirate captain Emanuel Wynn in 1700. They announced to anyone who saw them that the crew of the ship was pirates and that if they surrendered, they’d be given mercy. No matter how they looked, all Jolly Rogers had one purpose: to send a message. Bartholomew Roberts’ first flag was a caricature of him sharing an hourglass with Death. These first flags, flown by Bartholomew Roberts and Francis Spriggs, looked nothing like what we would expect a modern Jolly Roger to look like.įor example, Francis Spriggs’ flag was a red skeleton on a black flag. While pirates had been around as early as 1650, the first Jolly Rogers weren’t flown until after the Golden Age of Piracy. View Larger Share this Image On Your Site Famous Pirate Flags Infographic by Vispronet A Short History of the Jolly Roger Pirate Flag But what does the pirate flag mean? Pirates Symbols and Meanings Symbol When it comes to pirates, perhaps nothing has captured people’s attention more than one of the most famous pirate flags in existence, the Jolly Roger. Almost since the end of the Golden Age of Piracy in 1720, pirates have captured the imagination of the public.

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