The coat of arms has long been a symbol of any city that was formed before the revolution. This sign determined the direction of development of the region. Take at least the coat of arms of Ufa. It depicts a marten. These animals were abundant in the vicinity of the region.
Coat of arms of Ufa: why a marten?
Many argue that the marten is depicted on the emblem of Ufa, since there were a lot of them in the vicinity of the town. It is worth noting that the animal was even on the seal of the order hut. Which violated all the rules of heraldry. After all, the marten was turned to the right. Under the beast, stylized plants were placed, and there was also an inscription that read: "Seal of the Ufa town." At that time, the voivode, stolnik F.I.Somov, received a strict order: to keep the seal and not to give it into the wrong hands under any pretext. The coat of arms of Ufa appeared in the 30s of the 16th century.
Nowadays, the old symbol of the city of Ufa has received a second life. The marten, running across the field, reminds everyone that it is necessary to protect and preserve those treasures that the nature of this amazing land generously shares with people.
Lost coat of arms
A century later, the emblem of Ufa was lost in St. Petersburg. At this time, they tried to introduce a completely different symbol: a white horse that runs along the red field. The story of the loss of the coat of arms of Ufa is quite simple. During the reign of Peter the Great, a kind of heraldry office was created. At that time, it was headed by Santi - Italian. However, after some time, he stepped aside and fled abroad, while grabbing many emblems, among which was the symbol of Ufa.
Coat of arms restoration
After some time, the coats of arms of the cities were restored by order of Peter the Great. However, in St. Petersburg they forgot or did not know about the symbol of Ufa. As a result, the emblem was changed. The new image was taken from the book, which was called “Symbolism and Emblem” and was released in the 18th century in Amsterdam. The new coat of arms of Ufa adorned the horse. However, the inhabitants of the city, peasants, as well as peaceful artisans did not accept the new symbol. The coat of arms with the horse depicted on it took root only in the Ufa garrison. The old symbol was restored only in 1782. This happened in the year the Ufa governorship was founded. The symbol has been returned. It is worth noting that the emblems of other cities of Bashkiria were decorated with the coat of arms of Ufa, located at the very top. At the same time, the symbolism of a certain city was located on the lower half. For example, three geese were depicted on the coat of arms of Sterlitamak , and a water sparrow on the coat of arms of Birsk. It is worth noting that the marten did not look quite realistic and strongly resembled a rat.
New changes
The coat of arms of Ufa has undergone many changes in the history of the city. In 1878, a new modification was carried out. Now, a silver shield was depicted on the emblem of Ufa, and already on it was a running azure marten with a scarlet tongue and eyes. Of course, the symbol of the city has become more beautiful. The shield on the coat of arms was surrounded by golden oak leaves that were interconnected by the St. Andrew ribbon. The marten has become more elegant. She was depicted with a curved back and protruding tongue.
After some time, the coat of arms was redone again. In the new version, the marten runs across the field. In the 90s of the last century, a competition was held for the best symbol of the city. E. A. Vinokurov - Honored Artist of Bashkortostan - proposed to exhibit the old coat of arms of Ufa as one of the options. The most amazing thing is that the symbol of the region won the competition.
In 2006, the emblem of the city was restored. Ufa has returned its symbol again, but in a different guise. The decision was made on October 12 by the heraldic council under the President of the Russian Federation. The symbol of the city has been preserved. The coat of arms depicts a brown-brown natural marten that runs along the green earth in a silver field.