A Haitian Vodou flag shows a figure recognizable as Saint Patrick and places him between serpents associated with Danbala. In Regla, across the bay from central Havana, a procession for the Virgin brings together people whose devotions include Yemayá. These two examples show how an image or an occasion can carry religious associations from more than one tradition. They also show why it matters to identify the people, objects and actions involved. Birmingham Museum of Art’s flag by Joseph Oldof Pierre · Fowler Museum’s exhibition on Vodou flags · Carrie Viarnés’s fieldwork in Regla
A saint’s image on a flag for Danbala
The Birmingham Museum of Art holds a flag by the Haitian artist Joseph Oldof Pierre, made with satin, sequins and glass beads. It depicts Saint Patrick at the center, serpents at his sides and a church to the right. The museum identifies the serpents with Danbala, a Vodou lwa, or spirit. A photograph of a second flag by Antoine Oleyant shows the same association with different details. The figure has a bishop’s headwear and staff and also holds an ason, a ritual rattle. The flags use recognizable features of Catholic imagery within works that address a Vodou spirit. Birmingham Museum of Art’s flag by Joseph Oldof Pierre · AMNH archival photograph of a flag by Antoine Oleyant · Fowler Museum’s exhibition on Vodou flags
A procession makes the crossing part of devotion
In her account of the Virgin of Regla procession, Carrie Viarnés describes people taking the ferry across Havana Bay. Some carried white flowers or candles and some threw coins into the water as they appealed to Yemayá, an oricha associated with the sea in the Afro-Cuban tradition Regla de Ocha. Viarnés also records people wearing Catholic crosses or saint medals, initiation beads associated with Regla de Ocha, or both. The shared occasion brought together participants who gave different or overlapping meanings to the journey and its offerings. Carrie Viarnés’s fieldwork in Regla
What the comparison can show
Religious syncretism is a term for forms of encounter and combination like these. In the flags, a recognizable figure takes on another association through the serpents, ritual implement and ceremonial setting. In Regla, a statue and a route give participants a place to express devotions that may overlap. The Birmingham and AMNH objects and the fieldwork document those particular settings. A wider claim about what every participant believes would need evidence about their own understanding. Birmingham Museum of Art’s flag by Joseph Oldof Pierre · AMNH archival photograph of a flag by Antoine Oleyant · Carrie Viarnés’s fieldwork in Regla · Syncretism and multiple belonging
Conclusion
The flag and the procession show two ways religious meanings can meet. The flag places signs from different traditions within the same object. The procession gives people a shared route on which to make offerings and express different forms of devotion. Following how the symbols are used in each case gives a more specific account of syncretism than assuming every practice has become part of one uniform belief system. Birmingham Museum of Art’s flag by Joseph Oldof Pierre · Carrie Viarnés’s fieldwork in Regla · Syncretism and multiple belonging
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