Not all Russian cities can boast of the presence of ancient heraldic symbols. The main reason may be different, for example, the coat of arms of Vorkuta has existed only since April 1971, because the city itself is quite young.
The former settlement received the status of a city in 1943, the main official symbol - almost thirty years later, during the heyday of the so-called Brezhnev era. Therefore, the elements depicted on the city coat of arms are associated with Soviet symbols.
Description of the heraldic symbol of Vorkuta
The compositional structure of the coat of arms of this city, located beyond the Arctic Circle, is quite simple. Rather, it resembles a Soviet-era souvenir badge than a heraldic symbol. The coat of arms consists of a shield divided into three unequal fields. Each of the fields contains its own elements:
- in the top scarlet field - an inscription, the name of the city "Vorkuta" (all capital letters);
- in the lower field of silver color there is a blue pattern made in the spirit of national ornaments of the indigenous inhabitants of the lands, the Komi.
The most interesting symbols are placed in the central field of the shield, painted in azure color. There are elements associated with the world of wildlife and the world of man. The first is the deer, as the brightest representative of the kingdom of the local fauna. The animal is shown jumping out, with its head held high and its large horns thrown back.
The presence of man and the main directions of his activity in this region are evidenced by the headframe located above the mine, and the coal waste heap. These elements are reminiscent of the role that Vorkuta plays in the extraction of minerals, in particular coal.
A color photo of the main official symbol of Vorkuta emphasizes that the author of the sketch used the basic colors of the Russian state flag (azure, silver, scarlet). Silver color, which in heraldry can be shown as white, is considered traditional for the northern regions of Russia, where winter is most of the year.
By the way, an interesting fact is that in Soviet times, even with the Vorkuta coat of arms, the city produced souvenir badges with completely different symbols. The field of the badge was depicted in emerald color, with a golden sling, and in the free fields one could see stylized images of deer heads.
In the upper part of such icons, a golden mountain was depicted, as a symbol of the natural resources of this land with the rays of the rising sun. This element was used in the meaning of a symbol of prosperity, wealth.
