Salzburg is one of the most picturesque Austrian cities, which today is the fourth largest in the country. It is located in the west of the country, literally a couple of kilometers from the German border on the banks of the Salzach River. If you translate its name literally, it will sound like "Salt Castle", and the city received this name due to the fact that in the Middle Ages the city authorities levied a duty on barges transporting salt across the river, and salt was the subject the same fee. It should be noted that the official coat of arms of Salzburg even captured this interesting fact from the life of the city, immortalizing it for posterity.
However, in this city there is a lot of interesting things not only for lovers of antiquity. Modern Salzburg is also the student capital of Austria, so you can go here not only for photos of ancient architectural monuments, but also for the reckless fun of youth parties.
History of the coat of arms of Salzburg
It should be noted right away that Salzburg has a very long history. The first large settlement appeared here in the 1st century BC. However, until the 7th century, until the city passed to Bishop Rupert, it was an ordinary provincial town. But under the leadership of the episcopate, things quickly went uphill here, and after the discovery of abundant deposits of rock salt here in the 8th century, the city simply flourished, and at the same time acquired its own coat of arms.
Description of the coat of arms
The constituent elements of the composition are a red shield; fortress wall; white towers with golden roofs. In general, all this has its own special meaning. For example, walls and towers are quite familiar heraldic signs related to church symbols. In this case, the castle wall means reliability and inviolability, while the open gate symbolizes the readiness to accept everyone who sincerely wishes to join the new.
There is some disagreement about the tower's white walls. Some researchers directly associate them with the name of the city (salt castle), while others believe that they, according to the generally accepted interpretation, are a symbol of openness, honesty and purity of the thoughts of the townspeople.
Castle towers with gilded roofs are also a traditional heraldic symbol for Europe. Since gold is associated with the sun and the sky, the tall towers with sparkling gilding on the roof here represent a sign that guides people to the light of heaven.
The red color of the shield in one form or another is found in almost 80% of all urban coats of arms of Western Europe and means that it is the willingness of the townspeople to shed blood in the fight against a possible invader.
