Last modified: 2002-10-19 by jarig bakker
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![[Koscian county CoA]](../images/p/pl-wp)ks.gif)
image from this website, located
by Jarig Bakker, 10 Oct 2002
![[Koscian city flag]](../images/p/pl-wp-ko.gif)
by Pascal Gross, 12 Jun 2001
Flag of Kościan, Kościan county, in Wielkopolskie vojvodship is on this
website. The Kościan flag was designed in November 1997 by the Instytut
Heraldyczno-Weksylologiczny (Heraldic Institute) in Warsaw. Its symbolism
is closely related to the heraldic arms of Kościan. There are three basic
colours of the arms on the flag red, white and blue as well as the arms
of Kościan - a defensive tower. The additional element on the flag is a
blue belt at its base that symbolizes an inseparable part of the town -
the Obra Channel.
Pascal Gross, 12 Jun 2001
![[Koscian city CoA]](../images/p/pl-wp)ko.gif)
image from this
website, reported by Pascal Gross, 12 Jun 2001
The municipal heraldic arms appeared in Poland at the end of XIII century
and most often it was the adopted arms of the superior lord, enriched with
elements of municipal defensive architecture. Very often it presented the
image of a patron saint, which usually was also a patron of the municipal
parish church. Usually, a chief officer chose the heraldic arms or a town
council and its use, as a stamp which was the sign of the autonomy of the
municipal government.
The Kościan heraldic arms was probably established by aldermen, and
then approved by a royal office. Because of the defensive nature of the
town, a defensive tower was chosen as its visual symbol and is qualified
as the architectural arms. It is possible to reconstitute the real look
of Kościan's heraldic arms only by analyzing the few remaining stamps of
the municipal marks. The oldest one of which originates from the end of
XIV century and can be seen as a wax stamp on documents from 1396, 1397,
1401 and 1408. On the mark itself, there is a wooden defensive tower with
gate and two rectangular windows. The tower has a balustrade with five
columns and four battlements with the balustrade being held up on brackets.
On the second and fourth column there is a triangular roof finished with
a knob. The same arms can be found on a document from 1591. Aldermen probably
ordered a new mark in 1622 which depicted a tower without a balustrade,
brackets or knob. However, it still had an open gate, two rectangular windows,
four columns and a triangular roof. This mark was used until 1793 when,
due to the 3rd partition of Poland, Kościan was incorporate