Heraldry - The heraldic sign of Marianske Lazne

The coat of arms of Mariánské Lázně dates back to the time of the declaration of the spa as a city on May 29^th 1865. The emblem is on display above the entrance to the Town Hall. On the head-moldings on the second floor of the Town Hall, one may count fifty-three town coats of arms. The town has always been very proud of its status, earned from the former local authority – the Monastery of Teplá.

What does the coat of arms consist of? In the upper left portion, the Madonna in a blue cloak is depicted against a golden background, cradling her infant in her right hand, both having halos above their heads. In the upper right blue field, a silver round pavilion with a red cupola and patriarchal cross are depicted. The double cross as an archiepiscopal symbol relates to the archbishop St. Norbert, the founder of the Premonstratensian Order to which the Monastery of Teplá belonged. The cross is the only reference to the establisher and former authority over the spa – the Monastery of Teplá. Mariánské Lázně did not use any of the symbols of the monastery, not even the antlers of Hroznatov.

In the wide lower part, an overflowing circular fountain of stone is shown in silver on a green pedestal, with Aesculapius's snake coiled around it. Two green fir trees stand on each side of the fountain. The picture in the top left commemorates the naming of the town after the Madonna, which took place in 1808. The worship of the Virgin Mary came there from the Monastery of Teplá. The original coat of arms of the town depicted the Madonna with her child in her right arm, while later the emblems were incorrectly depicted with the infant Jesus in her left arm. In the upper right section, the pavilion of the Cross Spring is shown – the genuine emblem of Mariánské Lázně. Its reconstruction in the years 1911 – 1912 adhered to the original design dating from 1818. The bottom part symbolizes the wealth of Mariánské Lázně: mineral springs, their curative power represented by Aesculapius's snake - the symbol of medicine, and the natural bounty of the woods in the surroundings. This third symbol in particular is highly relevant to the present times.

The town used yellow, blue and white in the three stripes on the town flags, with appropriate copyrighted signs and emblems for commercial purposes. Teplice In Bohemia (Teplice v Čechách) traditionally used its ancient emblem of the severed head of St. John on a plate. The original town emblem of Karlovy Vary was rarely used, and in time a chamois unexpectedly became the symbol of its coat of arms (its statue stands on Jelení Skok Hill – Deer Jump Hill). Mariánské Lázně used the pavilion of the Cross Spring as its copyrighted symbol. Some local buildings bear emblems with three deer's antlers, indicating the town's former affiliation to the Monastery of Teplá. The monastery acquired this emblem from its founder Hroznata on the occasion of its founding in 1193. The ancient brown jugs, used for transporting mineral water, bear this symbol too, since the pumping of mineral water was also done by the Monastery of Teplá.

Source: "Mariánské Lázně 106 Times, or the Story of a Town that Only Needed 100 Years to Achieve World Fame" by V. Křížek and R. Švandrlík" [Křížek, V., Švandrlík, R.: 106 x Mariánské Lázně, aneb vyprávění o městě, kterému postačilo sto let k dosažení světové proslulosti - in Czech language only]

Many curiosities from the history of Mariánské Lázně and its surroundings may be found at the web site of Richard Švandrlík - Hamelika – at: www.hamelika.cz.

Translated by: Jana Vejříková