An interesting story has happened with one of the major Russian cities. The first coat of arms of Novokuznetsk was adopted in 1804. The second heraldic symbol appeared during the heyday of Soviet power in 1970. With the collapse of the Union and access to an independent path of development, the city authorities returned the historical coat of arms, but at the same time forgot to adopt a normative act that canceled the previous symbol.
Therefore, today in Novokuznetsk, two coats of arms are officially valid at once, each person and each organization has the right to choose which image, 1804 or 1970, to use, without violating the law.
Description of the modern coat of arms of Novokuznetsk
The modern heraldic symbol of the city, which exactly coincides with the image of 1804, has a fairly simple structure. It is a shield, a favorite French form in Russian heraldry. This is a classic rectangle, with an aspect ratio of 9: 8, the lower ends are rounded, and the middle, on the contrary, is elongated, forming an acute angle.
The shield is divided into two, almost equal fields, each of which has its own symbols: in the upper part - a silver horse; in the lower part there is a smithy.
The upper field is the so-called coat of arms of the Tomsk province, which included the city in the first half of the 19th century. The field is emerald in color, the horse is silver, this combination of colors looks natural. In a literal meaning, emerald color is used to convey a real landscape, in a figurative meaning it is a symbol of prosperity, prosperity, profit. Silver color in heraldry is associated with nobility, beauty, spiritual purity.
The lower field is depicted in gold, which also symbolizes prosperity and splendor. The main element of this part of the coat of arms is the smithy, which is depicted in natural color. In front of the building, you can see the tools that blacksmiths use in their work.
Soviet coat of arms - Soviet symbols
In 1970, the city received a new heraldic symbol, which was radically different from the historical coat of arms. The heraldic shield had an unconventional shape with teeth at the top, gold, silver, scarlet and black colors were present.
The silver (white) field symbolized the nature of Siberia, the blast furnace is stylized in scarlet color. The black square is a symbol of the main city-forming industries, coal and metallurgy. The Kuznetsk fortress was conditionally shown through the battlements in the upper part of the city's coat of arms.
