diff --git a/src/annotator/config.js b/src/annotator/config.js
index 2f0d3339ea2..a487f083203 100644
--- a/src/annotator/config.js
+++ b/src/annotator/config.js
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 'use strict';
 
-var annotationIDs = require('./util/annotation-ids');
+var annotationQuery = require('./util/extract-annotation-query');
 var settings = require('../shared/settings');
 
 var docs = 'https://h.readthedocs.io/en/latest/embedding.html';
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ function config(window_) {
     }
   }
 
-  // Extract the direct linked ID from the URL.
+  // Extract the default query from the URL.
   //
   // The Chrome extension or proxy may already have provided this config
   // via a tag injected into the DOM, which avoids the problem where the page's
@@ -41,9 +41,9 @@ function config(window_) {
   //
   // In environments where the config has not been injected into the DOM,
   // we try to retrieve it from the URL here.
-  var directLinkedID = annotationIDs.extractIDFromURL(window_.location.href);
+  var directLinkedID = annotationQuery.extractAnnotationQuery(window_.location.href);
   if (directLinkedID) {
-    options.annotations = directLinkedID;
+    Object.assign(options, directLinkedID);
   }
   return options;
 }
diff --git a/src/annotator/sidebar.coffee b/src/annotator/sidebar.coffee
index 623dcefda89..31e18454577 100644
--- a/src/annotator/sidebar.coffee
+++ b/src/annotator/sidebar.coffee
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ module.exports = class Sidebar extends Host
     super
     this.hide()
 
-    if options.openSidebar || options.annotations
+    if options.openSidebar || options.annotations || options.query
       this.on 'panelReady', => this.show()
 
     if @plugins.BucketBar?
diff --git a/src/annotator/util/annotation-ids.js b/src/annotator/util/annotation-ids.js
deleted file mode 100644
index 2964a4f7a88..00000000000
--- a/src/annotator/util/annotation-ids.js
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,27 +0,0 @@
-'use strict';
-
-/**
- * Extracts a direct-linked annotation ID from the fragment of a URL.
- *
- * @param {string} url - The URL which may contain a '#annotations:<ID>'
- *        fragment.
- * @return {string?} The annotation ID if present
- */
-function extractIDFromURL(url) {
-  try {
-    // Annotation IDs are url-safe-base64 identifiers
-    // See https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc4648#page-7
-    var annotFragmentMatch = url.match(/#annotations:([A-Za-z0-9_-]+)$/);
-    if (annotFragmentMatch) {
-      return annotFragmentMatch[1];
-    } else {
-      return null;
-    }
-  } catch (err) {
-    return null;
-  }
-}
-
-module.exports = {
-  extractIDFromURL: extractIDFromURL,
-};
diff --git a/src/annotator/util/extract-annotation-query.js b/src/annotator/util/extract-annotation-query.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..872965ade07
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/annotator/util/extract-annotation-query.js
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+'use strict';
+
+/**
+ * Extracts an annotation selection or default filter from a url.
+ *
+ * @param {string} url - The URL which may contain a '#annotations:<ID>'
+ *        fragment.
+ * @return {Object} - An object with either an annotation ID or a filter string.
+ */
+function extractAnnotationQuery(url) {
+  var filter = {};
+  try {
+    // Annotation IDs are url-safe-base64 identifiers
+    // See https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc4648#page-7
+    var annotFragmentMatch = url.match(/#annotations:([A-Za-z0-9_-]+)$/);
+    var queryFragmentMatch = url.match(/#annotations:(query|q):(.+)$/i);
+    if (queryFragmentMatch) {
+      filter.query = decodeURI(queryFragmentMatch[2]);
+    } else if (annotFragmentMatch) {
+      filter.annotations = annotFragmentMatch[1];
+    } else {
+      filter = null;
+    }
+  } catch (err) {
+    // URI Error should return the page unfiltered.
+    filter = null;
+  }
+  return filter;
+}
+
+module.exports = {
+  extractAnnotationQuery: extractAnnotationQuery,
+};
diff --git a/src/annotator/util/test/extract-annotation-query-test.js b/src/annotator/util/test/extract-annotation-query-test.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..f52179f2b86
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/annotator/util/test/extract-annotation-query-test.js
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+'use strict';
+
+var unroll = require('../../../shared/test/util').unroll;
+
+var annotationIds = require('../extract-annotation-query');
+
+describe('annotation queries', function () {
+         
+  it ('returns null on invalid fragment', function () {
+    assert.equal(annotationIds.extractAnnotationQuery(
+      'http://localhost:3000#annotations:\"TRYINGTOGETIN\");EVILSCRIPT()'),
+      null);
+  });
+         
+  unroll('accepts annotation fragment from urls', function (testCase) {
+    assert.equal(annotationIds.extractAnnotationQuery(testCase.url).annotations, testCase.result);
+  }, [{
+    url: 'http://localhost:3000#annotations:alphanum3ric_-only',
+    result: 'alphanum3ric_-only',
+  },
+  ]);
+
+  unroll('accepts query from annotation fragment', function(testCase) {
+    assert.equal(annotationIds.extractAnnotationQuery(testCase.url).query, testCase.result);
+  }, [{
+    url: 'http://localhost:3000#annotations:q:user:USERNAME',
+    result: 'user:USERNAME',
+  },
+  {
+    url: 'http://localhost:3000#annotations:QuerY:user:USERNAME',
+    result: 'user:USERNAME',
+  }, {
+    url: 'http://localhost:3000#annotations:q:user:USERNAME%20tag:KEYWORD',
+    result: 'user:USERNAME tag:KEYWORD',
+  }]);
+});
+
+
diff --git a/src/sidebar/host-config.js b/src/sidebar/host-config.js
index 89c527a95f6..bfeaeb787ed 100644
--- a/src/sidebar/host-config.js
+++ b/src/sidebar/host-config.js
@@ -16,6 +16,9 @@ function hostPageConfig(window) {
   var paramWhiteList = [
     // Direct-linked annotation ID
     'annotations',
+                        
+    // Default query passed by url
+    'query',
 
     // Config param added by the extension, Via etc.  indicating how Hypothesis
     // was added to the page.
diff --git a/src/sidebar/reducers/selection.js b/src/sidebar/reducers/selection.js
index 5f731a61406..fa3655b0a1a 100644
--- a/src/sidebar/reducers/selection.js
+++ b/src/sidebar/reducers/selection.js
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ var uiConstants = require('../ui-constants');
 
 var util = require('./util');
 
+
 /**
 * Default starting tab.
 */
@@ -37,9 +38,10 @@ TAB_SORTKEYS_AVAILABLE[uiConstants.TAB_ANNOTATIONS] = ['Newest', 'Oldest', 'Loca
 TAB_SORTKEYS_AVAILABLE[uiConstants.TAB_NOTES] = ['Newest', 'Oldest'];
 TAB_SORTKEYS_AVAILABLE[uiConstants.TAB_ORPHANS] = ['Newest', 'Oldest', 'Location'];
 
+
 function initialSelection(settings) {
   var selection = {};
-  if (settings.annotations) {
+  if (settings.annotations && !settings.query) {
     selection[settings.annotations] = true;
   }
   return freeze(selection);
@@ -81,7 +83,7 @@ function init(settings) {
     // IDs of annotations that should be highlighted
     highlighted: [],
 
-    filterQuery: null,
+    filterQuery: settings.query || null,
 
     selectedTab: TAB_DEFAULT,