Estonia - Coat of Arms

Last modified: 2002-04-12 by dov gutterman
Keywords: estonia | lion | leopard |
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by Ivan Sache, 22 Febuary 2002

• Coat of arms

See also:

• Estonia
• Toomas Molden's Estonia page
• Estonian Symbols

Coat of arms

The colors of the great and small coat of arms are blue (PANTONE 285 C) and golden.

The Great and Small State Coats of Arms of the Republic of Estonia were confirmed by the Riigikogu by a Lawadopted on June 19, 1925, which entered into force on the territory of the Republic of Estonia on July 21, 1925.

According to the description in that Law, the coat of arms can be in two shapes, a large coat of arms or a small coat of arms. The large national coat of arms has three blue lions (or according to some interpretations, leopards) on a shield with a gold base. The shield is surrounded on three sides by a wreath of golden oak leaves. The smaller coat of arms lacks this.

Upon the passing of the Law, proposals were made in the Riigikogu on possible interpretations of the images on the coat of arms. A consensus was reached on the suggestions offered by Leopold Raudkepp:

• One of the lions symbolizes the courage of the fight for freedom in ancient times. The second stands for the courage in the uprisings in Harjumaa in 1343. The third represents the courage of the Estonian fight for freedom between 1918-1920.
• The wreath of oak leaves stands for the perseverance and strength of Estonia and the evergreen traditions of freedom.

The golden-yellow shield with three blue lions was used for the first time as the corporate seal of the association of Tartu and Viruvassals in 1284. Later