United Tribes of New Zealand stars. The description was: "A red St. George's Cross on a white ground. In the first quarter, a red St. George's Cross on a blue ground, pierced with four white stars." This version of the flag served as the "de facto" national flag of New Zealand from 1835 until the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in February 1840. The version of the flag with black fimbriation and eight-pointed stars is widely used today as a flag by Māori groups throughout New Zealand, who also refer to it as the He Whakaputanga flag. The flag features on the medals presented
Crux exiting the Gambia River in 1455, calling it the "carro dell'ostro" ("southern chariot"). However, Cadamosto's accompanying diagram was inaccurate. Historians generally credit João Faras for being the first European to depict it correctly. Faras sketched and described the constellation (calling it "Las Guardas") in a letter written on the beaches of Brazil on 1 May 1500 to the Portuguese monarch. Explorer Amerigo Vespucci seems to have observed not only the Southern Cross but also the neighboring Coalsack Nebula on his second voyage in 1501–1502. Another early modern description clearly describing Crux as a separate constellation is attributed to Andreas Corsali,