In the place of the union of the two great rivers of Russia, the Oka and the Volga, the ancient city of Nizhny Novgorod is located. This beautiful city in 1221 was founded by Prince Yuri Vsevolodovich. Initially, it was a reference point for the defense against Cheremis, Tatars and Mordovians. After the Tatar yoke ended, Nizhny Novgorod became the political and economic center of North-Eastern Russia.
Symbols of the city of Nizhny Novgorod
Like any other city in our country, Nizhny Novgorod has its own symbols that every inhabitant of this metropolis and the entire Nizhny Novgorod region knows . The official symbols of the former city of Gorky are the flag and coat of arms of Nizhny Novgorod. They have their own history and have changed outwardly more than once.
Nizhny Novgorod coat of arms
The coat of arms of the provincial Nizhny Novgorod, ratified on August 16 in the distant 1781, served as the basis for the current coat of arms. The emblem of the city of Nizhny Novgorod in the form of a quadrangle was made, its lower ends are rounded, and the ends of the heraldic shield in the center are sharp. From all sides it is framed by a red ribbon of the Order of V.I. Lenin.
Character Explanation
The crown represents high development, the achievements of the ancient city. It gives information that Nizhny Novgorod is an urban district, the administrative center of the region.
The deer symbolizes wisdom, exaltation, purity, life and greatness. This is one of the most beloved heraldic emblems. A deer is a symbol of a warrior, embodying the victory of light forces over dark ones. The city, on the coat of arms of which this noble animal flaunts, is simply doomed to prosperity.
The ribbon that surrounds the coat of arms of Nizhny Novgorod suggests that the city has an award in the form of the Order of Lenin.
What do the colors of the coat of arms mean?
The scarlet color on the coat of arms implies energy, courage, maturity, courage and fearlessness.
Silver color symbolizes purity, nobility and perfection.
Black color means honesty, prudence, humility and wisdom.
The modern coat of arms of Nizhny Novgorod, the photo of which you see, was approved in 2006, December 20. This happened after the leadership of the country decided that all the coats of arms of the cities, which are administrative centers, should be depicted with a crown.
Origin
The history of the coat of arms of Nizhny Novgorod and the symbols depicted on it are still considered controversial. Some historians claim that in the XVI-XVII centuries. the elk was painted on the coat of arms, and in the XVIII century was changed by deer to the herald masters. Other experts believe that the deer on the Nizhny Novgorod coat of arms was already present in the XVII century. They base their assumptions on the “Mural to all sovereign seals” of 1626, which was compiled after the fire in Moscow in 1626. It is said in this: "The seal of Nizhny Novgorod: deer, under it is the earth."
S.V. Afonshin in his "Tale of the Furious Deer" writes that in the era of Ivan the Terrible, many dried deer lived in the Nizhny Novgorod forests. Their meat inspired the warriors in a victorious battle. Tsar the Terrible learned to hunt them and, having obtained the meat of a brave and beautiful elk, he conquered the city of Kazan. After that, he ordered that the coat of arms of Nizhny Novgorod adorn the moose, but officials mistakenly drew a horned deer.
Another version of the appearance of a deer instead of a moose: in the old days, moose were often referred to as a “buck deer”, that is, they showed that its horns in their appearance resemble Russian moose. And if you imagine that the coat of arms was painted by a Fryaz artist (a painter from another country), then most likely he did not understand what a “dried deer” is and what it looks like, and he painted a noble deer familiar to Europeans.
There are still rumors that Empress Catherine the Great, at the time when she herself invented coats of arms for all cities, thought that nevertheless the deer looks more graceful in comparison with the mighty elk and ordered to give refinement to the coat of arms of Nizhny Novgorod.
An interesting fact is that, as the hunters of the Nizhny Novgorod region recall, the only deer that was seen in the local forests was a northern one, inexplicably found in the southern latitudes. Perhaps it was he who was placed on the coat of arms of Nizhny Novgorod.
Heraldic deer
The red deer is considered a symbol of masculinity, nobility and a brave warrior. Particularly popular was his image as an emblem in Germany and England. According to the ancient legends of the peoples of Germany, a deer can only make a snake escape with its smell. It was this ability that became the basis for using this beautiful animal as a symbol of the fight against ill-wishers, a symbol of a brave warrior, strong not only physically, but also in spirit and moral principles, ideas. Such an animal as a deer can be seen on the arms of many cities in the world. The noble and graceful look made it very popular in heraldry.
The deer most often appears in profile, but it is depicted either galloping, running, or importantly walking, but it can also stand peacefully. As an exception, the animal may be resting, lying. Occasionally they draw only one head of a deer and its beautiful horns. In addition to the semantic load, these differences are needed in order not to confuse images of a noble animal, belonging as symbols to different countries, peoples, territories, lands, and even individual genera of people. In addition to differences in the drawn figures or parts of the body of the animal, there are also differences in color. For example, the coat of arms of Nizhny Novgorod, the pictures with which you have already seen, is decorated with a bright red deer, and a silver deer is depicted on the coat of arms of the principality of Rostov. In Poland, a white deer with a golden crown is painted.