A beautiful, bright and sultry South American city received a strange name - the January River - from European discoverers. First, they gave such a name to the Guanabara Bay, confusing it with a water stream, and then a new settlement. Perhaps that is why the coat of arms of Rio de Janeiro shows two representatives of the aquatic fauna at once.
Armillary Sphere and City Patrons
The official emblem of Rio, on the one hand, contains well-known symbols that are often found in the heraldry of countries and cities in Latin and South America. Among them, for example, the red Phrygian cap, a traditional symbol of liberation in heraldry, and the armillary sphere. On the other hand, in the sketch of the heraldic symbol of the capital of Brazil, there are quite rare characters. The coat of arms of the Brazilian capital is built according to the classical canons, it contains:
- an azure shield with a sphere, a cap and three intersecting arrows;
- supporters - stylized dolphins;
- a wreath of laurel and oak leaves in a frame;
- crown in the form of a stone fortress.
The authors of the sketch used the colors of precious metals - gold for the central composition and crown, silver for the image of dolphins. There are also shades of azure (shield), emerald (leaves), in small details black is used to show the windows of the fortress, and red is the color of the Phrygian cap.
The arrows depicted on the shield, in this case, are symbols that indirectly indicate the defense capability of the city, the readiness of residents to defend themselves. Arrows are associated with Saint Sebastian, who is the patron saint of glorious Rio.
Symbolism of colors and meaning of symbols
Brazilian scientists in the field of heraldry note that the image of the coat of arms has changed nine times in the history of the city. The truth is that there were no major, major changes. And small ones, in particular, were associated with a change in the colors and shades of individual parts of the coat of arms, as well as the drawing of the elements themselves.
The presence of blue and silver (white) colors on the city's coat of arms is associated with the traditional colors of the Portuguese monarchy. It is known that her brave sailors were the first to reach the distant shores of Brazil. The red color of the Phrygian cap is the desire for freedom and independence, and also a symbol of the shed blood of Sebastian, who, being canonized, protects the city and is considered its patron.
