The Vatican (Papal) flag, also known as the flag of the Holy See, consists of two vertical bands of yellow and white with the crossed keys of Saint Peter and the Papal Tiara centered in the white band. The yellow and white colors represent the gold and silver keys of the kingdom of heaven, which Saint Peter was given the authority to “bind and loose” by Jesus Christ according to the Christian tradition. The crossed keys represent the keys of heaven and symbolize the power and authority of the Pope, who is the head of the Roman Catholic Church and the ruler of Vatican City, the smallest independent state in the world. The Papal Tiara, a crown worn by the Pope in the past, symbolizes the spiritual and temporal power of the Papacy.