The winged lion of Mark the Evangelist for centuries has been the national emblem and landmark of Venice (detail from a painting by Vittore Carpaccio, 1516)

The lion is a common charge in heraldry. It traditionally symbolizes bravery, valor, strength, and royalty, since it is traditionally regarded as the king of beasts. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Mark the Evangelist (מרקוס, Greek: Μάρκος) (1st century) is traditionally believed to be the author of the Gospel of Mark and a companion of Peter. ... The Dream of St Ursula (1495) Tempera on canvas, 274 x 267 cm Gallerie dellAccademia, Venice Vittore Carpaccio (c. ... Binomial name Panthera leo (Linnaeus, 1758) Distribution of Lions in Africa Synonyms Felis leo (Linnaeus, 1758) The lion (Panthera leo) is a mammal of the family Felidae and one of four big cats in the genus Panthera. ... In heraldry, a charge is an image occupying the field on an escutcheon (or shield). ... Heraldry in its most general sense encompasses all matters relating to the duties and responsibilities of officers of arms. ...

Positions

The following table summarizes the positions of a heraldic beast.

The lion's head is normally seen in profile. If he faces the viewer he is gardant (or guardant), and if he looks back over his shoulder he is regardant. These adjectives follow any other adjectives of position. In heraldry, a crest is a component of a coat of arms. ...

The lions in the coat of arms of England are passant gardant. In French blazon this charge is called a léopard; a lion rampant gardant is a léopard lionné; and a lion passant with his head in profile is a lion léopardé. The position of the head thus determines his species. This practice leads some people to insist bitterly that the beasts in the royal arms of England are leopards, not lions. There is no right answer to this question; nevertheless they are officially depicted with a mane. The mane is the term, when speaking of a horse, used to describe the line of hair along the spine of the neck, starting behind the ears and ending just above the withers. ...

A lion (or other beast) coward has his tail between his legs. His tail may also be forked (queue fourchée) or doubled (double-queued); in the arms of the kingdom of Bohemia, the forked tail was originally an artist's flourish, but later became a distinctive and essential detail.

History

The lion has been represented figuratively since the Stone Age. Ice age hunters depicted the lion this way in the cultural stage of the Aurignacian more than 30,000 years ago. The characteristic of the lion as the "king of the jungle" goes back to the influence of The Physiologus, an early Christian book about animal symbolism which spread into many cultures and generally had great influence in Western culture. The royal symbolism of the lion was repeatedly taken up in history, in order to claim power, for example by Henry the Lion. The ongoing fascination is apparent today by the diversity of coats of arms on which the lion is shown in various colors and forms (see below). Stone Age fishing hook. ... Aurignacian is the name of a culture of the Upper Palaeolithic present in Europe and south west Asia. ... The Physiologus was a predecessor of bestiaries (books of beasts). ... Coronation of Henry the Lion and Matilda of England (1188) Henry the Lion (face of statue on his tomb in Brunswick Cathedral) Henry the Lion (1129 - August 6, 1195; in German, Heinrich der Löwe) was a member of the Welf dynasty and Duke of Saxony as Henry III since... A modern coat of arms is derived from the medi val practice of painting designs onto the shield and outer clothing of knights to enable them to be identified in battle, and later in tournaments. ...

In antiquity, the lion was common in the south coast of the Mediterranean, as well as in Greece and the Middle East. According to the Book of Genesis of the Hebrew Bible, the Israelite Tribe of Judah had the Lion of Judah as its symbol. In Greek mythology the lion appears in a variety of functions. The Nemean Lion was represented as a people-eating beast; killing it was one of the twelve tasks assigned to Heracles. In the story of Androcles, one of Aesop's fables, the hero, a run-away slave, pulls a thorn from a lion's paw; when he is later thrown to the lions as punishment for escaping, the lion recognizes him once again and refuses to kill the man. The lion also plays a role in numerous other antique cultures. In Egypt the pharaoh was represented as the sphinx, a lion with a human head. The best known representation of this type is the Great Sphinx of Giza. The Egyptian mythology also recalls Dedun, the Egyptian god of wealth. The Mediterranean Sea is an intercontinental sea positioned between Europe to the north, Africa to the south and Asia to the east, covering an approximate area of 2. ... Genesis (Greek: Γένεσις, having the meanings of birth, creation, cause, beginning, source and origin) is the first book of the Torah (five books of Moses) and hence the first book of the Tanakh, part of the Hebrew Bible; it is also the first book of the Christian Old Testament. ... 11th century manuscript of the Hebrew Bible with Targum This article is about the term Hebrew Bible. For the Hebrew Bible itself, see Tanakh (Jewish tradition) or Old Testament (Christian tradition). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Tribe of Judah (Hebrew: יְהוּדָה, Praise; Standard Hebrew , Tiberian Hebrew ) is one of the Hebrew tribes, founded by Judah, son of Jacob(Israel). ... Lion of Judah has its origins in the Book of Genesis of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) where the Israelite tribe of Judah had the lion as its symbol. ... The bust of Zeus found at Otricoli (Sala Rotonda, Museo Pio-Clementino, Vatican) Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the ancient Greeks concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. ... The Nemean Lion (Latin: Leo Nemaeus) was a vicious monster in Greek mythology that lived in Nemea. ... Hercules, a Roman bronze (Louvre Museum) For other uses, see Heracles (disambiguation). ... Androclus, a Roman slave who lived about the time of Tiberius. ... Aesop, as depicted in the Nuremberg Chronicle by Hartmann Schedel. ... Pharaoh was the ancient Egyptian name for the office of kingship. ... The Great Sphinx of Giza, with the Pyramid of Khafre in the background For other uses, see Sphinx (disambiguation). ... The Great Sphinx at Giza, Egypt The Great Sphinx of Giza is a large half-human, half-lion Sphinx statue in Egypt, on the Giza Plateau at the west bank of the Nile River, near modern-day Cairo (). It is one of the largest single-stone statues on Earth, and... In Egyptian mythology, Dedun (or Dedwen) was a lion-god of wealth and prosperity, worshipped in Upper Egypt and Nubia. ...

The image of lion appears on many flags, coats of arms and emblems. For example, it symbolises the Sinhalese people (Sinhalese Singha = Lion). Local folklore tells of Prince Vijaya, the first of the Sinhalese kings, as being the son of Sinhabahu, who was fathered by a lion. See history of Sri Lanka. Lions are recurring symbols in the coat of arms of royalty and chivalry, particularly in the UK, where the lion is also a national symbol of the British people, and in Ethiopia, where it is a symbol of the Monarchy. The Sinhalese are the main ethnic group of Sri Lanka. ... The recorded History of Sri Lanka boasts of 25 chronicled centuries. ... A modern coat of arms is derived from the medi val practice of painting designs onto the shield and outer clothing of knights to enable them to be identified in battle, and later in tournaments. ... Members of the British Royal Family This article is about the monarchy-related concept. ... Bors Dilemma - he chooses to save a maiden rather than his brother Lionel Chivalry[1] is a term related to the medieval institution of knighthood. ... The Emperor (Geez ንጉሠ ነገሥት, , King of Kings) of Ethiopia was the hereditary ruler of Ethiopia until the abolition of the monarchy in 1975. ...

Examples of lions in coats of arms

Lions rampant

Coat of arms of Thuringia Image File history File links Coat_of_arms_of_Thuringia. ... The Free State of Thuringia (German: Freistaat Thüringen) is located in central Germany and is considered one of the smaller of Germanys sixteen Bundesländer (federal states), with an area of 16,200 km² and 2. ...	Coat of arms of Hesse Image File history File links Coat_of_arms_of_Hesse. ... Hesse (German: Hessen) is a state of Germany with an area of 21,110 km² and just over six million inhabitants. ...	Coat of arms of Rhineland-Palatinate Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The Rhenish Palatinate (Rheinpfalz, sometimes Lower Palatinate or Niederpfalz) occupies rather more than a quarter of the German Bundesland (federal state) of Rhineland-Palatinate (Rheinland-Pfalz) and contains the towns of Ludwigshafen, Kaiserslautern, Neustadt an der Weinstrasse, Pirmasens, Landau and Speyer. ...	Coat of arms of Saarland Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Location Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2) Administration Country NUTS Region DEC Capital Saarbrücken Minister-President Peter Müller (CDU) Governing party CDU Votes in Bundesrat 3 (from 69) Basic statistics Area  2,569 km² (992 sq mi) Population 1,044,000 (11/2006)[1]  - Density 406 /km...
Coat of arms of the Czech Republic, with the double-tailed lion of the former kingdom of Bohemia Image File history File links Coat_of_arms_of_the_Czech_Republic. ... The Coat of arms of the Czech Republic The Coat of Arms of the Czech Republic displays the three historical regions which make up the nation. ...	Lion supporters in the arms of Calderdale (England) Arms of Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council. ... Calderdale is a metropolitan district of the metropolitan county of West Yorkshire, England, through which the upper part of the Calder flows. ...	Coat of arms of Bulgaria Bulgarian coat of arms This image depicts a seal, an emblem, a coat of arms or a crest. ... Bulgaria were adopted in 1997. ...	Coat of arms of Luxembourg Image File history File links Coat_of_arms_Grand_Duchy_of_Luxembourg. ...
Coat of arms of Norway Norway coat of arms This image also exists on the commons as Image:Norway_coat. ...	Lion supporters in the arms of Prague (Czech Republic) Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Nickname: Motto: Praga Caput Rei publicae Location within the Czech Republic Coordinates: Country Czech Republic Region Capital City of Prague Founded 9th century Government  - Mayor Pavel Bém Area  - City 496 km²  (191. ...	The Lion of Judah on the municipal emblem of Jerusalem (Israel) Jewish emblem of Jerusalem Source: [1] This is a copyrighted and/or trademarked logo. ... Lion of Judah has its origins in the Book of Genesis of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) where the Israelite tribe of Judah had the lion as its symbol. ... For other uses, see Jerusalem (disambiguation). ...	Coat of arms of Finland Image File history File links Coat_of_arms_of_Finland. ... The Coat of Arms of Finland were granted at the burial of Gustav Vasa in 1560 and still remain the arms of the Republic of Finland. ...
The royal coat of arms of Scotland Image File history File links Royal_Arms_of_Scotland. ... The Royal Coat of Arms of Scotland, as used before 1603 The Royal Coat of Arms of Scotland was the official coat of arms of the monarchs of Scotland, and were used as the official coat of arms of the Kingdom of Scotland until the Union of the Crowns in...	Flag of Flanders, Belgium Image File history File links Flag_of_Flanders. ... Flanders (Dutch: ) has several main meanings: the social, cultural and linguistical, scientific and educational, economical and political community of the Flemings; generally called the Flemish community (others refer to this as the Flemish nation) which is, with over 6 million inhabitants, the majority of all Belgians; the constituent governing institution...	Coat of arms of the Kingdom of the Netherlands Image File history File links Coat_of_arms_of_the_Netherlands. ...	Coat of arms of the Kingdom of Morocco Image File history File links Coat_of_arms_of_Morocco. ... This page may meet Wikipedias criteria for speedy deletion. ...
Coat of arms of the former Duchy of Aosta Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Coat of arms of the dukes of Aosta. ...	Coat of arms of Aosta Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Aosta Cathedral. ...	Lion canting arms for the former Kingdom of León Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Queen Mothers funerary hatchment, showing the canting bows and lions of Bowes-Lyon Canting arms is a technique used in European heraldry whereby the name of the individual or community represented in a coat of arms is translated into a visual pun. ... The city of León was founded by the Roman Seventh Legion (for unknown reasons always written as Legio Septima Gemina (twin seventh legion). It was the headquarters of that legion in the late empire and was a center for trade in gold which was mined at Las Médulas...	Coat of arms of León, Spain Image File history File links Escudo_de_León. ... The city of León (Llión in the Leonese language), located at 42. ...

Lions passant

Arms of the former Duchy of Aquitaine (France) Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... [Note : The Roman numerals after the names indicate which duke of that name they were and are not necessarily the same as their ordinals for their other titles. ...	Coat of arms of Denmark Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... The National Coat of Arms of Denmark consists of three crowned blue lions accompanied by nine red hearts, all in a golden shield. ...	Coat of arms of England Image File history File links England_COA.svg‎ Source own work created in Inkscape, based on Image:EnglishcoatofarmsGFDL.png Date 2006-11-21 Author MesserWoland Permission Own work, copyleft: Multi-license with GFDL and Creative Commons CC-BY-SA-2. ... The Coat of Arms of England The Coat of Arms of England is gules, three lions passant guardant in pale or armed & langued azure The Coat of Arms was introduced by King Richard I of England in the 1190s, apparently as a version of the arms of the Duchy of...	Coat of arms of Wales Image File history File linksMetadata Wales_coa. ... The Coat of Arms of the Principality of Wales is a coat of arms used by the Prince of Wales. ...
Coat of arms of Montenegro Image File history File links Coat_of_arms_of_Montenegro. ... The Coat of Arms of Montenegro was changed by an act of Parliament in 1993. ...	Coat of arms of Schleswig-Holstein Image File history File links Coat_of_arms_of_Schleswig-Holstein. ... Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the 16 Bundesländer in Germany. ...	Coat of arms of Baden-Württemberg Image File history File links Grosses_Landeswappen_Baden-Wuerttemberg. ... Location Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2) Administration Country NUTS Region DE1 Capital Stuttgart Prime Minister Günther Oettinger (CDU) Governing parties CDU / FDP Votes in Bundesrat 6 (from 69) Basic statistics Area  35,752 km² (13,804 sq mi) Population 10,741,000 (11/2006)[1]  - Density 300...	Coat of arms of Quebec Image File history File links Armes_du_Québec. ... Quebec coat of arms. ...

Other traditions

Emblem of India Image File history File links Emblem_of_India. ...

Lion on the coat of arms of Sri Lanka Image File history File links COA_of_Sri_Lanka. ...

See also

• Leo
• Leo Belgicus
• Leo Minor
• Gallery of flags with animals#Lion
• Manticore
• Eagle (heraldry)