The flag of the People's Republic of China—the "Five-stars-red Flag" , was designed by Zeng Liansong, an economist and artist from Rui'an county, Zhejiang province. He designed it in response to a circular distributed by the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in July 1949. Out of more than 3,000 candidates received for the design competition, Zeng's was chosen after being nominated as one of the 38 finalists. Chairman Mao Zedong hoisted the first flag on a pole overlooking Tian'anmen Square on the day of its unveiling.

Symbolism

The current design uses red as its background and gold for its stars. The red background symbolizes the blood of heroes who died during the revolution. The golden color mainly symbolizes the history and culture of the Chinese people and was partly inherited from the colors of the flag of the Soviet Union, which was also a combination of red and gold, in which case the gold symbolizes the brightness of the communist future.