February 23, 2015 8:30 AM - Updated: February 23, 2020 11:25 AM
This post has been updated to include additional images.
Photographer Joe Rosenthal admitted that when he took a shot of five Marines and one Navy corpsman raising the U.S. flag on Iwo Jima’s Mt. Suribachi on Feb. 23, 1945, he had no idea that he had captured something extraordinary. He was setting up for a different shot when he spotted the group of men planting the flag and quickly took a snap without even looking through the viewfinder. The chance photo would become iconic overnight and go on to win the Pulitzer Prize.
“Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima” is often cited as being the most reproduced photograph in history. It is also probably the most parodied image in the world. The “Iwo Jima pose” has become a popular symbol for organizations or movements wishing to convey victory, teamwork, or patriotism. The use of the image has ranged from respectful homage to what some consider offensive misappropriation.
Art and Sculpture
Carved in ice by Ice Art, IncMask of New York Islanders goalie Rick DiPietroAlstede Farms corn maze, Chester, New JerseyMarine Christmas Card from Lebanon in 1982Title Screen for 1986 Iwo Jima video game1955 reenactmentSand sculpture by artist J.W. GruberIllustration by the “etchasketchist”Sculpted out of butter in the Camp Fallujah chow hall, IraqCake made from crispy rice and chocolate at Cake CentralTattoo inspired by the photographJack O’LanternOl’ Glory beer successfully appealed to federal regulator to allow the “Pledge of Allegiance” to be printed on every can
Portable War Museum by artist Edward KienholzStained glass from the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.Balloon sculpture
Foreign Militaries
Several Foreign militaries have adopted the pose for a variety of uses.
Royal Norwegian Guards via RedditTurkish soldiers put a wire fence around area after Turkish flag is raised on Feb. 22, 2015 in Syria.Soldiers from the 1st Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland in 2013
Stamps and Currency
United States 1945United States 1995Sri Lanka’s Central Bank initially denied that the 1000 Rupee note circulated in 2009 was modeled after the Rosenthal photograph, but later confessed that the image was indeed the inspiration.Marine Corps 230th Anniversary Silver Dollar – 2005Opened in 2006, The National Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle, VA, was designed to evoke the raising of the flag.
Album Covers
Bands striking the Iwo Jima pose has become cliché.
Anti-Flag – A New Kind of Army, 1999Funkadelic -One Nation UNder a Groove, 1978Uriah Heep – Conquest, 1980Savatage – Fight for the Rock, 1986Rev Theory – Justice, 2011Canned Heat – Future Blues, 1970
Magazines, Comics and Book Covers
The 2008 Time magazine issue on global warming caused a furor when Iwo Jima veterans objected to the alteration of the original photo, calling it “an absolute disgrace”1969 Chicago Today American editorial cartoon showing the ghosts of Apollo 1 Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chafee helping Neil Armstrong raise a flag on the moon.2000 AD comic, 1999The short-lived Cosmos Science Fiction and Fantasy Magazine, 1953America: A Patriotic Primer by Lynne Cheney, 2002Speed Comics, 1945Jock magazine, 1969Blackhawk comic, 1983Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett, 2003Dumbest Generation by Mark Bauerlein, 200711 Freunde magazine from Germany, 2006
Activism
British Airlines Stewards and Stewardesses AssociationWashington, D.C. AnarchistsPublished in 1971, The New Soldier by John Kerry documented the efforts of the Vietnam Veterans Against the WarGreenpeace activists raise a model wind turbine at the Dept of the Interior in 2010.
Surfrider FoundationProtest against Japan’s toxic waste trade policies in the PhilippinesCover for Frontiers magazine by Ed Freeman
Editorial Cartoons
Among other commentary, the Iwo Jima pose is regularly used in satirical cartoons.
Mad magazine illustration after the terrorist attacks on the French satire magazine Charlie Hebdo in 2015.
Advertisements
1970s Panavision advertisement
Respol YPFGrace Elder CareAustralian TourismThe Official British Army Fitness Program
Pop Culture
A scene from the Netflix series Stranger Things.
Newsweek promotional photo for The Jersey Shore
Indicative of its relevance as a cultural touchstone, the Iwo Jima pose has been referenced on The Simpsons at least six times – “New Kid on the Blecch,” “Selma’s Choice,” “LargeMarge,” “Rosebud,” “Half Decent Proposal,” and “Mr. Spritz Goes to Washington.”
Dr. Who – “Victory of the Daleks” 2010Pitch Perfect 2Chuck – “Chuck Versus the Beard” 2010Hard Rock Café pin