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A Jolly Roger, also known as a Skull Mark (ドクロのマーク, Dokuro no Māku?, often shortened to simply Mark or Skull) or a Symbol (シンボル, Shinboru?), is the primary emblem of a pirate crew. It exists in countless variations across the world, distinguishing hundreds—if not thousands—of different crews as well as their respective property, ships, and territories.

Overview[]

The basic Jolly Roger consists of a human skull on top of a pair of "crossbones" intersecting at diagonal angles. This design may be expanded and/or modified in any number of ways, usually to reflect the appearance or interests of an individual pirate captain (e.g. the Whitebeard Pirates' bearing Edward Newgate's distinctive mustache, or the Straw Hat Pirates' bearing Monkey D. Luffy's Straw Hat); some variations may even exclude both skull and crossbones, though these typically substitute other violent imagery.[1]

In some cases, a Jolly Roger is designed to send a message, such as the Krieg Pirates Jolly Roger displaying a pair of hourglasses so as to let people know that their time has run out.

While Jolly Rogers are most often placed on the flags and sails of pirate ships (hence "Pirate Flag" (海賊旗, Kaizoku-ki?) being another common synonym), they are also commonly worn by individual pirates, as both clothing designs and bodily tattoos.

Ideals and Implications[]

This flag rejects impossibilities! It's the symbol of faith!
— Hiriluk[2]


Luffy Protects Hiriluk's Flag

Luffy protecting someone else’s flag out of respect.

As pirates themselves can vary widely in beliefs, actions, and reputations, the Jolly Roger has been linked with many different—sometimes conflicting—ideas.

For many, the Jolly Roger is nothing more than a symbol of power, showing off a pirate crew's strength to intimidate enemies and victims. Well-established pirates—most notoriously the Four Emperors—have been known to mark entire towns and even islands with their Jolly Roger, deeming such locations their "territories" and promising protection and retribution against outside attack.

More idealistic pirates—and sympathizers—have used the mark to espouse wider principles of freedom, personal conviction, and even friendship. Monkey D. Luffy, for instance, painted a crude replica of the Straw Hat Pirates' Jolly Roger on Laboon after befriending him; on a larger scale, Fisher Tiger's Sun Pirates adopted a sun-like Jolly Roger to obscure the brands on the slaves they routinely freed.

(The Davy Back Fight goes so far as to equate the Jolly Roger with a living crewman, treating it as a fair wager for any game. Its "Articles of Defeat" stipulate that losing a Jolly Roger will forever strip its (former) crew the right to display it—and implicitly allows the winning crew to confiscate any displaying flags, sails, or other equipment.)

Different crews react differently to these ideals. For example, Wapol did not see what was so important about the pirate flag in comparison to Luffy. Donquixote Doflamingo does not like the idea of anyone tarnishing his flag's name and punished Bellamy for losing under it.

Certain individuals, groups, and even nations who understand the ideals of the Jolly Roger, or have turned against ideas of the World Government, also raise the skull and crossbones; an example of this is the former Drum Kingdom, later renamed the Sakura Kingdom, who flew Dr. Hiriluk’s Jolly Roger as their national flag after the fall of Wapol.

Of course, any kind of Jolly Roger tends to be strongly opposed by the Marines and other World Government figures. According to Vice Admiral Momonga, being unable to recognize a Jolly Roger on sight means that the pirate crew it belongs to is insignificant. Though apparently not illegal per se (as the Sakura Kingdom, which uses one as the national flag, is recognized at Levely), its presence on any ship has been known to spark immediate attacks.[3][4][5]

Smileys[]

Donquixote Pirates' Jolly Roger

Doflamingo's crossed-out smiley.

Following the introduction of Donquixote Doflamingo, a different type of Jolly Roger has appeared. Rather than the traditional skull and crossbones, the flag is a smiley of a grinning person. The significance of this type of Jolly Roger has yet to be revealed. In some cases, such as Doflamingo's flag and the Human Auctioning House, the smiley has a line painted over it.

While some of the smiling Jolly Rogers are connected to Doflamingo, another smiley has been seen on Whitebeard's life support equipment. Ace also wore two smileys on his hat, one sad and the other happy. The Kid Pirates' secondary Jolly Roger is a smiley style with a stitched-up mouth. The Heart Pirates also have a smiley style Jolly Roger, only this one has 6 branches extending outwards in all directions, as a tribute to Donquixote Rosinante.

Flags[]

See also the associated category: Jolly Roger Images.

Pirate Crews[]

Gally Pirates' Jolly Roger
Straw Hat Pirates Portrait
Red Hair Pirates' Jolly Roger
Red Hair Pirates (current symbol)
Red Hair Pirates' Original Jolly Roger
Red Hair Pirates (former symbol)
Roger Pirates' Jolly Roger
Alvida Pirates' Jolly Roger
Buggy Pirates' Jolly Roger
Usopp Pirates' Jolly Roger
Black Cat Pirates' Jolly Roger
Krieg Pirates' Jolly Roger
Cook Pirates' Jolly Roger
Arlong Pirates' Jolly Roger
Rumbar Pirates' Jolly Roger
Giant Warrior Pirates' Jolly Roger
Bliking Pirates' Jolly Roger
Roshio Pirates' Jolly Roger
Bellamy Pirates' Jolly Roger
Masira Pirates' Jolly Roger
Shoujou Pirates' Jolly Roger
Saruyama Alliance's Jolly Roger
Blackbeard Pirates' Jolly Roger
Whitebeard Pirates Original Jolly Roger
Whitebeard Pirates (original)
Whitebeard Pirates Portrait
Macro Pirates Portrait
Fanged Toad Pirates' Jolly Roger
Foxy Pirates' Current Jolly Roger
Foxy Pirates (current symbol)
Foxy Pirates' Former Jolly Roger
Foxy Pirates (former symbol)
Space Pirates' Flag
Thriller Bark's Jolly Roger
Kid Pirates Portrait
Hawkins Pirates Portrait
Drake Pirates Portrait
Heart Pirates' Jolly Roger
On Air Pirates Portrait
Bonney Pirates' Jolly Roger
Bonney Pirates (current symbol)
Bonney First Jolly Roger
Bonney Pirates(former symbol)
Fire Tank Pirates Portrait
Fallen Monk Pirates' Jolly Roger
Kuja Pirates Portrait
Sun Pirates' Jolly Roger
Spade Pirates' Jolly Roger
A O Pirates' Jolly Roger
Little Pirates' Jolly Roger
Golden Lion Pirates' Jolly Roger
Brownbeard Pirates' Jolly Roger
Fake Straw Hat Crew's Jolly Roger
Caribou Pirates' Jolly Roger
Flying Pirates' Jolly Roger
New Fish-Man Pirates' Jolly Roger
Gyro Pirates' Jolly Roger
Big Mom Pirates Portrait
Donquixote Pirates' Jolly Roger
Barto Club Jolly Roger
Beautiful Pirates Jolly Roger
New Giant Warrior Pirates Portrait
Yonta Maria Grand Fleet Portrait

Unnamed Pirate Crews[]

Puppu's Jolly Roger
Puppu's crew
Chess Pirates' Jolly Roger
Chesskippa's crew
Goo's Jolly Roger
Goo's crew
Decalvan Brothers' Jolly Roger
Bizarre's Jolly Roger
Bizarre's crew
Blondie's Jolly Roger
Blondie's crew
Brew's Jolly Roger
Brew's crew
Epoida's Jolly Roger
Epoida's crew
Palm's Jolly Roger
Palms' crew
Whitey Bay's Jolly Roger
Whitey Bay's crew
Ramba's Jolly Roger
Ramba's crew
Islewan's Jolly Roger
Islewan's crew

Other Organizations[]

Non-Canon Flags[]

Personal Jolly Rogers[]

A few characters sport their own personal Jolly Roger. The reasons for that differ, as do the sources of the flags. While some are exclusively shown in the SBS (members of the Straw Hat Pirates), others appear in the series without further information (like Perona's) or are part of a "what if" scenario (Igaram's nightmare picturing Nefertari Vivi as a pirate).

Straw Hat Pirates[]

Zoro's Pre Timeskip Jolly Roger
Zoro's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip).
Zoro PJR (PT) OPM
Zoro's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Zoro's Post Timeskip Jolly Roger
Zoro's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip).
Zoro PJR (PoT) OPM
Zoro's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Zoro's Post Timeskip Jolly Roger 2
Zoro's personal Jolly Roger (Chapter 699).
Nami's Pre Timeskip Jolly Roger
Nami's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip).
Nami PJR (PT) OPM
Nami's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Nami's Post Timeskip Jolly Roger
Nami's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip).
Nami PJR (PoT) OPM
Nami's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Usopp's Pre Timeskip Jolly Roger
Usopp's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip).
Usopp PJR (PT) OPM
Usopp's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Usopp Alternate Jolly Roger
An alternate pre-timeskip personal Jolly Roger for Usopp as depicted in Chapter 507's Cover Page.
Usopp's Post Timeskip Jolly Roger
Usopp's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip).
Usopp PJR (PoT) OPM
Usopp's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Usopp Second Alternate Jolly Roger
Another alternate personal Jolly Roger for Usopp as depicted in Chapter 1025's Cover Page.
Usopp's Live Action Jolly Roger
Usopp's personal Jolly Roger in the live-action series.
Sanji's Pre Timeskip Jolly Roger
Sanji's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip).
Sanji PJR (PT) OPM
Sanji's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Sanji's Post Timeskip Jolly Roger
Sanji's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip).
Sanji PJR (PoT) OPM
Sanji's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Sakura Kingdom Infobox
Chopper's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip) and current flag of Sakura Kingdom.
Chopper PJR (PT) OPM
Chopper's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Chopper Alternate Jolly Roger
An alternate pre-timeskip personal Jolly Roger for Chopper as depicted in Chapter 507's Cover Page.
Chopper's Post Timeskip Jolly Roger
Chopper's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip).
Chopper PJR (PoT) OPM
Chopper's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Chopper Second Alternate Jolly Roger
An alternate post-timeskip personal Jolly Roger for Chopper as depicted in Chapter 651's Cover Page.
Robin's Pre Timeskip Jolly Roger
Robin's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip).
Robin PJR (PT) OPM
Robin's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Robin's Post Timeskip Jolly Roger
Robin's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip).
Robin PJR (PoT) OPM
Robin's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Franky's Pre Timeskip Jolly Roger
Franky's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip).
Franky's Pre Timeskip Jolly Roger 2
Franky's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip).
Franky PJR (PT) OPM
Franky's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Franky's Post Timeskip Jolly Roger
Franky's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip).
Franky PJR (PoT) OPM
Franky's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Brook's Pre Timeskip Jolly Roger
Brook's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip).
Brook PJR (PT) OPM
Brook's personal Jolly Roger (pre-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Brook's Post Timeskip Jolly Roger
Brook's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip).
Brook PJR (PoT) OPM
Brook's personal Jolly Roger (post-timeskip) as detailed in the One Piece Magazine.
Brook's Manga Tea Cup
Brook's jolly roger on his tea cup in the manga.
Brook's Anime Tea Cup
Brook's jolly roger on his tea cup in the anime.
Jinbe's Jolly Roger
Jinbe's personal Jolly Roger.
Vivi's Jolly Roger
Vivi's personal Jolly Roger.

Other Characters[]

Richie's Jolly Roger
Richie's personal Jolly Roger.
Merry's Personal Jolly Roger
Merry's personal Jolly Roger.
Perona's Jolly Roger
Perona's personal Jolly Roger.
Emporio Ivankov's Jolly Roger
Emporio Ivankov's personal Jolly Roger and of Kamabakka Kingdom.
Sabo's Jolly Roger
Sabo's flag.
Killer's Jolly Roger
Killer's personal Jolly Roger.
Ricky's Jolly Roger
The Jolly Roger on Ricky's cape.
Edward Weevil Jolly Roger
Edward Weevil's personal Jolly Roger.
Queen's Jolly Roger
Queen's personal Jolly Roger.
Black Maria's Personal Jolly Roger
Black Maria's personal Jolly Roger.
Kuma's Jolly Roger
Bartholomew Kuma's personal Jolly Roger.
SBS102 Enel Jolly Roger
Enel's theoretical Jolly Roger.
Vegeta's Jolly Roger
Vegeta's Jolly Roger in Cross Epoch.
Mobston's Jolly Roger
Mobston's personal Jolly Roger.
Redfield's Jolly Roger
Patrick Redfield's personal Jolly Roger
Bullet Jolly Roger
Douglas Bullet's personal Jolly Roger.

Other Jolly Rogers[]

Different styles of Jolly Rogers shown in the volumes and covers of the manga.

Sinister Jolly Roger
A sinister Jolly Roger.
Original Design Jolly Roger
A Jolly Roger with an original design.
Baseball Jolly Roger
Baseball themed Jolly Roger.
Jolly Roger With Ski Glasses
A Jolly Roger with ski glasses.
Samurai Jolly Roger
Samurai themed Jolly Roger.
Western Jolly Roger
Western themed Jolly Roger.
Chapter 100 Jolly Roger
The Jolly Roger from Chapter 100 cover.
Jolly Roger With Keffiyeh
A Jolly Roger with a keffiyeh.
Jolly Roger with Jaws
A Jolly Roger with jaws.
Jolly Roger with Feather Hat
A Jolly Roger with a feather hat.
Monkey Jolly Roger
A Jolly Roger with a monkey face.
Chapter 1000 Jolly Roger
The Jolly Roger from Chapters 999-1000 covers (a variant of the one in Chapter 100, with a larger hat and mustache).

Early Concepts[]

In the first draft of Romance Dawn, Luffy's Jolly Roger was depicted with a somewhat flatter skull, accompanied by two horizontally parallel arms instead of crossbones. This prototypical version of Luffy also made a habit of collecting flags from rival pirates he defeated.

References[]

  1. One Piece Manga — Vol. 1 (p. 82, 104), In a feature predating SBS columns, Oda discusses the concept of the Jolly Roger, and the basics of drawing one.
  2. One Piece Manga and Anime — Vol. 16 Chapter 142 (p. 11-12) and Episode 85, Hiriluk shows off his personal flag—and credo as a doctor—to Tony Tony Chopper.
  3. One Piece Manga and Anime — Vol. 5 Chapter 43 and Episode 20, Shortly after the Straw Hat Pirates have properly marked the Going Merry, they are attacked by Fullbody, despite being acknowledged as "unknowns" with no real criminal record (though in the manga, Johnny and Yosaku—technically passengers of the Straw Hats—had tried to attack him first).
  4. One Piece Manga and Anime — Vol. 54 Chapter 525 (p. 4) and Episode 422, Momonga dismisses the Buggy Pirates as 'bit players' because their Jolly Roger is not immediately recognizable.
  5. One Piece Manga and Anime — Vol. 60 Chapter 588 (p. 7) and Episodes 502503, Saint Jalmack fires on Sabo's ship, declaring that Sabo's Jolly Roger is all the reason he needs.

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