Last modified: 2010-02-19 by dov gutterman
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image by Željko Heimer, 27 August 2009
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Rab is a city on an island of the same name near the coast
beneath Velebit mountain range some 60 km south of Rijeka . City has about 10,000
inhabitants. It is known in Italian as Arbe, a name originating
from ancient Roman times when the city was established, when it
was known as Felix Arba. The attribute Felix was given to cities
in Roman times as especial gratitude.
The traditional coat of arms used since Middle Age contains
representation of St. Christopher. He is shown as crossing a
river carrying an infant - Baby Jesus, and in his right hand a
staff with branched end. A crescen and mullet also appear
regularly. In a coat of arms redention used nowdays, a slihuete
of the city is also shown with characteristic four bellfrys. The
shield is crowned and within a wreath with white and blue ribbon
inscribed "Felix Arba".
A modernized version of the Coat of Arms is shown in [osg02] (prepaired presumably by
Heraldic-art d.o.o. from Rijeka, responsible also for many other
modern Coat of Arms in the region). It is noted in the book,
though, that this version is not (yet?) used, and that the
traditional version is still in use. (It is not clear weather
this means that the design is adopted in city assembly but for
some reason not used or what, and it is not clear if the Ministry
approved it etc.)
The modern design is surely accompanied with a (monocoloured?)
flag but we shall need more info about it - and if the Coat of
Arms is not used that the flag is also not used. The ribbon in
the Coat of Arms suggest that a
bicolour flag might have been used traditionally. In Rab are
organized traditionally a chivalry games (most well known for
cross- bow competitions) that suirely would include lot of
flagging, but I have no detailed information.
Sources: [osg02]
Oštric Goroslav: Monumenta heraldica, izbor iz heraldicke
baštine primorsko-goranske županije, Pomorski i
povijesni muzej Hrvatskog primorja Rijeke, 2002. Croatia Tourist
Guide, Leksikografski zavod Miroslav Krleža, Zagreb, 2000.
Željko Heimer, 29 June 2003
In all issues of the official gazette from 1993 (i.e. the
first number) until August 2003 there is not a single act
regarding the symbols of Rab. As we know from other sources Rab
uses a traditional Coat of Arms, and a porposed modernization is
"in circulation" but no decision was made, apparently.
The white and light blue ribbon in the traditional Coat of Arms
certainly refer to the flag of San Marino.
Namely the saint that established this republic was born in Rab -
and his tradition is still well respected there.
Željko Heimer, 19 August 2003
Until now I had no info on the flag, but today on the TV in a
programe reporting something from the City of Rab there was shown
the City Assembly Hall where the city flag is displayed between
the county and the state flag. The flag is diagonally
divided white and very light blue with the
("traditional") coat of arms in the middle. The
direction of the diagonal I am not quite sure, the shots from
there were very brief, but on a Tourist
Association site it is shown partially.
The flag is most certainly not approved and its use is therefore
unofficial.
Željko Heimer, 4 May 2005
On the official web site of the city of Rab at <www.rab.hr>, one may
see the Coat of Arms and the flag graphics. The Coat of Arms
shown is shield only of the "traditional" Coat of Arms
below. This may be hint that the city obeyed the requirement of
the central authorities that the Coat of Arms should not include
elements outside the shield even for the historical coats of
arms.
The flag shown there, on the other hand pictures a different type
of artistic rendering of the Coat of Arms, obviously a
modernization of the historical pattern, but not the one we have
- this one following the historical pattern more closely.
On <www.rab.hr>,
where in Article 9 and 10 the Coat of Arms and the flag are
described (my translation):
"9. The Coat of Arms of the city of Rab is of shield shape,
wiuth the ratio of its height to the width 1:0.9. In the first
third of the height [obviously meaning the lowers third, ZH]
there is an eightpointed star above a crescent moon both being
infornt three wavy lines symbolizing the sea. The star and the
moon are set in the middle vetically. In the right part of the
shield, on the top wavy line is the silhuette of the city of Rab,
where the large belfry (belfry of St. Mary) is set in the very
vertical axis of the shield and that the ball at the top of the
belfry is set on the 0.7 of the total height. In th left of the
shield is the depiction of St. Christopher, shown from the front
in early Romantic style. The background of the shield is blue,
the crescent, wavy lines and the shapes of Rab are silver while
the star and the St. Christopher depiction are golden.
10. The flag of the city of Rab is composed of two in the middle
diagonally divided colours: Marianic blue and white with the coat
of arms of the city of Rab in the middle bordered with the shield
coloured golden, with the corwn of St. Christopher above from
which is hanging the ribbon of glory seven times surrounding a
wreath on the one side of olive and on the other of black oak and
containing the inscription Felix Arba".
The description is obviously unheraldic and hard to follow. The
sides of left and right are meant from viewer's point of view.
The flag description is especially not helpful, it is ambigous
and even gramatically problematic (in fact the original Croatian
text if taken literally would have meaning that the wreath is
surrounding the ribbon seven times and not the other way around).
Anyway, the modernized Coat of Arms shown on the flag on the web
site does not quite match the description, especially missing the
oak wreath and without the proper ribbon. There are other minor
discrepancies (wavy lines are there stirght, saint is not golden
etc.). Therefore I think that we are still far from having
definite informations.
Željko Heimer, 19 July 2006
A few days ago there was a TV reprot from Rab on Croatian TV
where the horizontal flag was cleraly visible - and where the
division is such as matching the (vertical) flag shown on the Rab
web site. The Coat of Arms on TV was stiched to the flag as if it
was printed on a white piece of fabric, so a thing white oval
outline was visible where it covers the blue field. However, I
decided to ignore that im my image as being "unintentional
imperfection" of the manufacturing and not the intended flag
design.
Željko Heimer, 29 July 2006
Images are based on the traditional Coat of Arms of Rab, as it
seems that this is only used by the city itself (and not the
Heraldic Art modernized design). It is also used on horizontal
and vertical flag, as already reported.
Željko Heimer, 27 August 2009
When I was on Rab in early 1991, I vaguely remember seeing
some king of banners, horizontally divided with the skyline of
the town and the four belltowers, but no saint; probably some
privately-made ephemera to liven up the place for tourists?
Eugene Ipavec, 30 August 2009
I would guess so. Or it was the tourist board who did it as
promotion...
In any case, the vexillology of Rab is still full of surprises
and there are lot to be found there. The mentioned variations of
the city Coat of Arms are jost one thing (appearing on the flags
in various representations), but there are other flags as well -
just to mention the flags used in connection with the traditional
crossbow fastivities held annualy in Rab, where the competitors
or their team are represented with kinds of medieval
flags/banners. They are also displayed around the city, I
believe.
Željko Heimer, 30 August 2009
Photo of some flag photographed in Rab at <travel.webshots.com>.
Aleksandar Nemet, 31 August 2009
Until the end of 2009 still no other flag related legislation
issued in official gazette, except the 1993, 2001 and 2009
Statutes containing word-for-word the same description of the
coat of arms and the flag, that are not approved by the central
authorities:
- Statut Grada Raba, 30.12.1993, Službene novine
Županije Primorsko-goranske, 6/1994, 07.03.1994.
- Statut Grada Raba, 05.10.2001, Službene novine
Primorsko-goranske županije, 24/2001, 10.10.2001.
- Statut Grada Raba, 14.07.2009, Službene novine
Primorsko-goranske županije, 27/2009, 20.07.2009.
Željko Heimer, 7 December 2009
image by Željko Heimer, 27 August 2009
The vertical version of the flag shown on the city web site is
showing an other artistic version of the coat of arms.
Željko Heimer
ri-rb.gif)
Traditional Coat of Arms
image by Željko Heimer, 27 August 2009
ri!rb.gif)
Modernized Coat of Arms (not in use)
image by Željko Heimer, , 29 June 2003