Coats of arms: Lynx in Gomel, Belarus
What is shown on flags, coins, coats of arms and why?
Various plants, insects,
birds and animals have been depicted on national flags, coats of arms or coins
all over the world. The main rule of heraldry - encompassing the design of
armorial bearings - is to take the most frequent subject typical of an area and
connect it with the armory.
Coat of arms of Gomel, Belarus
The lynx is a symbol of
Gomel, an old Belarusian city founded in 1142. The coat of arms of Gomel
depicts a lying lynx. The background of the coat of arms is light-blue.
Nowadays, artificial lynxes meet travellers at the entrance of Gomel, in the
Central Park and in different parts of the city as well.
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| Lynx on the light blue background of the coat of arms, Gomel |
A part of history of Gomel's coat of arms
Much earlier, at the
time of Catherine II, the Russian Empress reigning in the 18 century, there were
a lot of lynxes inhabiting the territory of the present day district of Gomel. Since
then the picture of a lynx has been widely used in the design of seals, flags
and the coat of arms of Gomel. The lynx has not left the coat of arms except
for the Soviet period which lasted for 69 years. However, during that period of
time the city of Gomel did not possess any coat of arms but the flag. Only in
1997 both the coat of arms and the lynx were returned to the city.
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| Lynx greeting travellers |
Bronze sculpture of the lynx and the first dweller of Gomel
The Central Park of
Gomel is a miraculous place for having a rest. What is more, it is home for the
trees which leaves were eaten by dinosaurs! Well, the bronze statue named “Boatman”
represents the first man who arrived at the territory of nowadays Gomel by the
River Sozh. By the way, the Sozh is international, it flows in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.
On the boat close to the man there is a lynx. Both of them seem to be ready to discover new territories. The sculpture is surrounded by water what makes you
believe that the person and his unusual pet are captured by time.
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| Lynx and the first dweller of future Gomel |
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