PH revolution flag found in Antique 

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ILOILO CITY — A Philippine flag believed to have been raised during the country’s revolution against Spanish colonizers has resurfaced in Antique, potentially altering the timeline of key revolutionary events in the Visayas.

HISTORIC PH FLAG Edbert Cabrillos (left) holds an 1898 Philippine flag alongside Norma Furio-Abellon (center), granddaughter of Filipino revolutionary leader Col. Ruperto Abellon. The flag is believed to be first raised outside Luzon during the Philippine Revolution against Spanish colonizers. PHOTO COURTESY OF EDBERT MASENDO CABRILLOS/FACEBOOK

Antiqueño historian and professor Edbert Cabrillos said Norma Furio Abellon, granddaughter of Col. Ruperto Gorero Abellon, revealed that she had preserved a historic flag hoisted by Gen. Leandro Fullon on Sept. 21, 1898, upon his arrival in Inyawan, Antique (now Libertad).

Ruperto served as Fullon’s second-in-command during the expeditionary campaign sent by Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo to liberate Panay Island from Spanish control.

According to Cabrillos, the flag was handed over to Norma by her father, Juan Abellon, a former mayor of Patnongon, who instructed her to keep the artifact safe in their ancestral home in San Jose de Buenavista.

The century-old artifact measures 53 inches wide and 93 inches long and remains 80 percent intact, though the state is already fragile and partially deteriorated, according to Cabrillos.

“This cultural material, which is the flag, is a bit rotted. The flag is defective, but all entirely, 80 percent is intact,” he said in a phone interview on Tuesday, June 24.

The claim was further supported by a 5”x7” photograph of Juan Abellon, Norma’s father and a former mayor of Patnongon, holding the flag during a June 12, 1967 Independence Day celebration in San Jose de Buenavista, the province’s capital town.

The photo, developed at a photography studio of the family of Antique provincial board member Errol Santillan, has circulated on the Nostalgic Hantique Facebook page for years but only recently attracted deeper scrutiny.

Santillan, whose father took the photograph, confirmed its authenticity, noting he had seen the image when he was 9 years old.

On the back of the photograph is a handwritten note, believed to be by Santillan’s father, detailing the flag’s origins and significance.

“This flag is the very original one planted by Gen. Fullon in his 1st expeditionary forces on the shore of Libertad (then Angyawan), Antique, on September 21, 1898,” the note written in cursive read.

“This was preserved by Col. Ruperto G. Abellon, second-in-command to his 2nd cousin Gen. Fullon and handed down to his son, Juan Abellon.”

“Juan is here shown exhibiting and explaining the history during his speech in the plaza of San Jose on June 12, 1967, Independence Day Anniversary,” the note concluded.

If verified, the flag’s raising in Libertad would predate the recognized revolutionary flag-raising in Santa Barbara, Iloilo, on Nov. 17, 1898, led by Gen. Martin Delgado during the formal inauguration of the Revolutionary Government of the Visayas.

Cabrillos said they will be conducting a rigorous historical verification process to validate the historical significance of the discovered materials.

He added that they are coordinating with the provincial government and national cultural agencies for the preservation efforts.

If the claim is proven, Cabrillos said this brings “a renewed sense of pride and identity among Antiqueños, especially in Libertad and heritage conservation.”

He clarified, however, that the discovery is not meant to displace Santa Barbara’s role in history.

“It does not diminish the importance of Santa Barbara’s role; it rather enriches our understanding of the broader revolutionary movement across the islands,” he added.