One of the main state symbols of Iceland is its coat of arms. On June 17, 1944, Iceland was proclaimed a republic, and since that time the coat of arms has existed in its present form.
Symbols and their meaning
In 1944, the president of the island state of Iceland, Sveitn Björtnsson, signed a decree on the coat of arms of the republic, which explained the symbolism and its meaning. So, on the Icelandic coat of arms, you can see a blue shield. There is a silver cross on it, and inside it is a bright red. The ends of the crosses on the four sides reach the edges of the shield. Four guardian spirits of Iceland support this shield: the dragon is the patron saint of North-East Iceland, the bull is the South-West, the vulture is the North-West and the giant is the South-East. Guardian spirits stand on a slab of columnar basalt (volcanic rock).
Guardian spirits depicted on the coat of arms were very revered in ancient times. So, ships, in order to land on the shores of Iceland, had to have an image of one of these creatures.
History of the modern coat of arms of Iceland
Initially, Iceland, inhabited by immigrants from Norway in 870-930 AD, did not have statehood, and therefore there were no symbols of state power such as the flag and coat of arms. However, at that time there were personal coats of arms of representatives of the nobility, as can be judged by the seals that have survived from ancient times. Among the symbols of personal coats of arms, which were also depicted on shields, were a falcon, a polar bear, etc.
Throughout its history, Iceland has been ruled by both Norway and Denmark. During this time, several coats of arms have changed. Presumably, the first was a shield with six silver and six blue stripes, the second was a shield with the image of a red lion with an ax. A red shield with a headless cod and a crown above it, as well as a blue shield with a white falcon were in use.
In 1940, German troops occupied the mainland of Denmark, which at the time included Iceland. Taking advantage of the weakening of Denmark, the national council decided to hold a referendum, as a result of which Iceland became an independent republic on June 17, 1944.
The newly formed Icelandic republic appealed to the Vatican with a request to help develop the coat of arms, but the Vatican heraldists, due to their employment, could not help.
The government appointed an expert group to design the coat of arms of the new republic. As a result, the royal coat of arms of Iceland was only slightly modified. For example, it was decided to abandon the image of the crown, because Iceland is no longer part of the monarchy. The color and design have also changed slightly. The shape of the shield, the outlines of guardian spirits changed, a slab of columnar basalt appeared. The artist Tryggvi Magnusson is the author of the final version of the coat of arms. His drawing is currently in the National Museum of Iceland.
