# The mayor's cool sash **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 23, 2005, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mayors-cool-sash/332453 "2005-11-23T19:06:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mayors-cool-sash/332453/1 "2005-11-23T19:06:18Z")
Mayor “Diamond” Joe Quimby of Springfield gets to wear a cool sash that says “Mayor” on it. Obvsiously the writers of _The Simpsons_ drew inspiration from somewhere, but I’ve never actually seen a public official in real life who gets to wear a sash. So are there actually any towns in the US where the mayor gets to don such gay apparel? ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mayors-cool-sash/332453/2 "2005-11-23T19:07:06Z")
Mayor McCheese always wore a sash… ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mayors-cool-sash/332453/3 "2005-11-23T19:16:25Z")
The [Lord Mayor of London](http://www.britishembassy.gov.uk/servlet/Front%3Fpagename%3DOpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage%26c%3DPage%26cid%3D1091891438852) gets to wear some serious bling. ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mayors-cool-sash/332453/4 "2005-11-23T19:39:16Z")
> [@Tapioca Dextrin](#): > > The [Lord Mayor of London](http://www.britishembassy.gov.uk/servlet/Front%3Fpagename%3DOpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage%26c%3DPage%26cid%3D1091891438852) gets to wear some serious bling. Whewn you hold an office that goes bnack at least 800 years you can afford to do that. At least he’s not wearing [an ermine-lined coat like the guy in the picture here.](http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/Corporation/leisure_heritage/corp_history/lm_history_office.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mayors-cool-sash/332453/5 "2005-11-23T19:41:18Z")
Apparently mayors in France wear sashes, because the proper wearing of the national colors as a sash has been [codified into law](http://atlasgeo.span.ch/fotw/flags/fr-law.html#wea): > [@](#): > > According to article R. 122-2 of the Commune Codes, “the Mayors shall wear the Tricolor sash with golden-fringed gloves for public ceremonies and every time the exercise of their functions may require that distinctive emblem of their authority”. > > This is the only regulation about that matter, which deals only with the circumstances in which the sash shall be worn. However, according to a well-established custom, the Town Councillors (the Mayor and the Deputies Mayors) wear the Mayoral sash from right shoulder to left side. The gloves are placed on the left, to the waist. Wearing the blue stripe upwards and the red one downwards is more natural, because it matches the unfurling of the national emblem from hoist, as prescribed by article 2 of the Constitution of 4 October 1958: ‘The national emblem is the tricolor, blue, white, red, flag.’ Wearing the sash girding one’s loins is also possible. ---
**Author:** ![h.sapiens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e0b2c6/32.png) [@h.sapiens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/h.sapiens)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mayors-cool-sash/332453/6 "2005-11-23T19:46:31Z")
HR Pufnstuf wore a sash, too. He was Mayor of Living Island. On a more relevant note, I’ve seen pictures of ambassadors wearing sashes, but only with formal wear, for state dinners and the like. I’m not sure whether they still do that, though. ---
**Author:** ![VegaBean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/ee7513/32.png) [@VegaBean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VegaBean)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mayors-cool-sash/332453/7 "2005-11-23T21:10:29Z")
Seems like all the royal houses of northern europe are fond of sashes, as were the emperial Austrians. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mayors-cool-sash/332453/8 "2005-11-23T21:13:37Z")
Randy, you’re thinking of _Monopoly_. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2005, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mayors-cool-sash/332453/9 "2005-11-23T21:55:15Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > Mayor “Diamond” Joe Quimby of Springfield gets to wear a cool sash that says “Mayor” on it. Obvsiously the writers of _The Simpsons_ drew inspiration from somewhere, but I’ve never actually seen a public official in real life who gets to wear a sash. So are there actually any towns in the US where the mayor gets to don such gay apparel? By a sash, you mean a diagonal thing like Miss \ contestants wear, not a mayoral [chain of office](http://www.toronto.ca/mayor_miller/mayor_chainofoffice.htm)? ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mayors-cool-sash/332453/10 "2005-11-28T16:38:30Z")
Many Latin American presidents wear sashes on state occasions (particularly at their inaugurations). Mexico, Peru and Argentina, off the top of my head. Don’t know of any American mayors who wear them. Re: the OP, remember when Homer became mayor of a seceding portion of Springfield? IIRC, he had a sash that came out of its own dispenser. He used the sashes to wipe his mouth after eating and was disappointed when the “restock sash” message appeared. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![butler1850](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@butler1850](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/butler1850)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mayors-cool-sash/332453/11 "2005-11-28T19:47:05Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > By a sash, you mean a diagonal thing like Miss \ contestants wear, not a mayoral [chain of office](http://www.toronto.ca/mayor_miller/mayor_chainofoffice.htm)? Same deal, but it says MAYOR on it. He’s often seen with women who have exactly the sashes you mention. Not officially, of course.