Erzulie vévé flag

Elaborately decorated with sequins and beadwork, vévé flags are sacred objects used to capture the essence of the lwa, or spirits, and are unfolded to indicate the beginning of a ceremony. Catholic rituals and iconography were incorporated into West African religious practices to conceal the Yoruba religion and were disseminated by enslaved Africans who were forced to convert to Catholicism. Erzulie is a female spirit of beauty and love, seduction, fertility, and purity, and is sometimes depicted like a Virgin Mary. Erzulie is also associated with the heart symbol, as depicted here.