The Russian northern capital, St. Petersburg, as usual, has its own official symbols: the flag, anthem and coat of arms.
Description and proportions of the flag of St. Petersburg
The flag of St. Petersburg is a rectangular cloth, the sides of which relate to each other in a 2: 3 ratio. The flag field is in red. In the center is the emblem of the city, representing two crossed anchors and a scepter with a double-headed eagle. The emblem of the Vatican, the city of St. Peter, served as the prototype of the coat of arms depicted on the panel.
One of the anchors on the flag of St. Petersburg is sea, and the other is river. This symbolizes the unity of the two ports of the northern capital. The scepter with a double-headed eagle reminds of the sovereign traditions of the city, the former capital of the Russian Empire, and serves as a symbol of imperial power.
The color of the flag is conveyed by mixing red lead and cinnabar paints. The images of the anchors are made in white with gray penumbra, and the scepter and crown are in gold.
History of the flag of St. Petersburg
Officially, the flag of St. Petersburg in its current form was adopted on June 8, 1992. It was entered into the Heraldic Register and given registration number 49. This happened after in 1991 more than half of the inhabitants of the northern capital spoke positively in a referendum in favor of returning the city to its historical name.
There were earlier designs of the flag, one of which was an exact copy of the Russian tricolor, in the upper corner of which, near the pole, was inscribed a golden image of a ship from the spire of the Admiralty. It is the Admiralty ship that is one of the visiting cards of the city on the Neva, and its image adorns many postcards and brochures with views of St. Petersburg.
The images of anchors on the modern flag are a tribute to the fact that the northern capital is one of the largest seaports in the country and in Europe. The river port of St. Petersburg is also of great importance in the economy of the city and the region.
The image of the scepter and crown is the sovereign power of the city, its historical and cultural heritage, military glory. The northern capital contains unique works of art, and its archaeological sites are protected by UNESCO as an invaluable heritage of mankind.
For several years, there were some inconsistencies regarding the proportions of the sides of the flag, but in 2012 the ratio of the length of the flag to the width was legislated as 3: 2, and the contradiction was eliminated.
