Description and the principles of using the coat of arms, flag and the seal of the City of Gdańsk

Description of the coat of arms, flag and the seal of the City of Gdańsk

1. The Coat of Arms of the City of Gdańsk
An open golden crown and two silver Greek crosses, one under the other, not overlapping the crown, placed against red background on a gothic shield.

2. The Great Coat of Arms of the City of Gdańsk
At the sides of the shield there are two standing golden lions facing each other and a golden sash with a black-lettered motto NEC TEMERE NEC TIMIDE is placed at the base of the shield.

3. Flag of the City of Gdańsk
The flag of the City of Gdańsk is a rectangular red sheet of fabric with a golden crown visible on both sides and with two silver Greek crosses placed under the crown, one under the other, with an axis crossing the flag at 1/3 from the flagpole.
The proportion of the width of the flag to its length is as 5:8.

4. Official seal of the City of Gdańsk
The official seal of the City of Gdańsk is a sign impressed using a round, metal seal featuring the coat of arms of the City of Gdańsk in the centre and the "City of Gdańsk” inscription in the surround, with a diameter of 62 mm.

Gdańsk is one of the few cities which had their coat of arms bestowed on them by the monarch.

Kazimierz Jagiellończyk, the king of Poland, with a charter dated 25 May 1457, not only bestowed on the city the right to use red wax (this is where the red shield originates from) and added a golden crown in the upper part of the shield, but also made a choice of one out of at least four coats of arms used in Gdańsk at the time.

In the very same year a new seal was issued and it features the image of the new coat of arms, already with the lions holding the shield. Such an image of the coat of arms was therefore confirmed and preserved, as it was widely used to decorate the city's architecture and many issues of coins minted for Gdańsk.

In the post-war period the looks of the coat of arms was interpreted and used in a free way. The flag of the City was left practically unused, as it was traditionally an expression of local government traditions and stressed the position and dignity of the City.

The first attempt to regulate these issues was made by the National City Council in Gdańsk on 29 March 1989, and then by the Council of the City of Gdańsk of the 1st term - on 10 December 1991.

Many voices were still calling for a final regulation of such matters and determining the binding model of the Gdańsk coat of arms and flag. On 1 February 1996 in the Winter Room of the City Hall a seminar on the Gdańsk coat of arms was held. The participants included the most prominent Gdańsk historians as well as heraldists, the councillors and other people interested in the problem. The conclusions drawn during the seminar were subject to many discussions in the Clubs of the councillors and during the Committee meetings, which finally resulted in a proposal of the shape of the coat of arms, great coat of arms and of the flag which is featured in the Resolution of the Council of the City of Gdańsk dated 1 August 1996.

The principles of using the coat of arms, the flag and the seal of the City of Gdańsk