Murm's coat of arms: history and description

The coat of arms of the city of Murom in 2016 marked the 235-year-old birthday. Why is it depicted exactly the lion and the kalachi? Did the Murom had any heraldry before the appearance of this coat of arms? What is the history of the creation of the main symbol of the city? The answers to all questions are below.

Without the coat of arms

Moore did not always have his coat of arms. But it was known from ancient times. For certain there is no person in Russia who did not hear the famous epic name - Ilya Muromets. Neither in the times of Ancient Rus, nor during the Middle Ages, the tradition of assigning to each city the coat of arms simply did not exist. True, there was a certain symbolism: initially its functions were performed by military banners, and then they were replaced by icons. In particular, Muromians guarded the face of the Savior Not Made by Hands. The main icon of the city for a long time was located on the Spassky Tower of the local Kremlin.

Murom can be attributed to the settlements, which acquired their own coat of arms relatively later. Many Russian cities in this regard were much more advanced. Perhaps this would have been the life of the Murom "under the icon", had it not been for the Senate decree of 1724, according to which every city of Russia should have a coat of arms. The implementation of the reform began. The process was headed by the Italian Francis Santi.

First coat of arms of Murom

Already by 1729 the Murom people could boast of their own coat of arms. True, he looked completely different than today. According to the entry in the arms of 1729-1730, the main symbol of Murom was the image of a white wall on the azure field. Also on it was a hand stretching the prince's crown on a gold chain.

According to the old Russian tradition, when creating this emblem, the symbolism of the military unit was used, which stood in Murom as a garrison. On the banners of the 21st Infantry Regiment there was also an emblem with a jagged white fortress, a hand in the clouds and a crown. It is believed that the first coat of arms of Murom was deciphered as follows: the wall is a symbol of the state border, on which the city was then; The hand with the crown is a tribute to the memory of Vladimir princes who once ruled here.

There is one more version, according to which the image of the fortress was taken as the basis for the coat of arms because of the name of the city (after all, "to make a mess" is to build walls, and the word "mur-mur" was called marble). The hand from the sky is the blessing of God, and the crown is memories of princely times.

The new coat of arms of the city

In the second half of the eighteenth century, the heraldic reform in Russia continued. Work was underway to create new symbols and improve them. Murom's coat of arms with a white wall and a hand from the clouds of their positions could not be held. He was succeeded by a new one, which was officially registered on the sixteenth of August, 1781.

The Murom got a completely new picture. In its upper part is depicted the Vladimir emblem, which is standing in a red field on the hind legs of a crowned lion with a silver cross in its right paw. And from below are drawn kalachi in quantity of three pieces.

Explanation of symbols

Why is this image as the main symbol received the city of Murom? The coat of arms, the description of which is given above, is easy to decipher. The fact is that when Catherine II decided to reflect in the heraldry specific features of settlements. That is, talk about the main occupation of the local population, about some achievements or sights. Murom , for many, was associated exclusively with kalachi, and the most delicious. There is even a legend that hospitable residents passing through the city of Catherine treated delicious pastries, and the queen was delighted. And Pavel the First liked the local kalachi so much that he even sent several pieces by mail to Petersburg.

The glory of Murom's "breadmasters" rattled far beyond the province. Muromtsev was called "kalachniki". And so it's not at all surprising that in the lower part of the emblem is exactly this image. And the upper part (the crowned lion) was present on the main symbols of all the cities of the Vladimir province. It was a common emblem. As for the symbolism of colors, the blue is softness, beauty and majesty, and golden is abundance, generosity and justice. That is what the modern coat of arms of Murom, officially approved in 2004, means.

Flag of Murom

We should say a few words about the flag of one of the most ancient cities of Russia, known as the homeland of the epic hero. This official symbol is a rectangular cloth of blue color (the ratio of length and width is three to two) with the image of three rollers.

Thus, the coat of arms and the flag of Murom - is, in fact, the same picture, except perhaps shades of flowers. In the second case, the blue background is somewhat muffled, and the kalachi, on the contrary, seem brighter, as if luminous.

Murom people love and honor their heraldry, which goes back centuries and is a symbol of a beautiful and prosperous city with a great past and future to suit it.