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Hvar (Split-Dalmatia, Croatia)

Grad Hvar

Last modified: 2010-01-22 by dov gutterman
Keywords: hvar | dalmatia | split-dalmatia | st stephen |
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image by Željko Heimer, 29 July 2006



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Overview

The city of Hvar is the main city at the island of the same name in the Split and Dalmatia County, about 40 km due south of Split. About 4,000 inhabitants, some 3,500 of them in the city itself (but this counts only permanent residents, during the summer there are noumerous tourists as well). Hvar being known mateorologically as the place with the most sunny days year-though in average. The place was settled in mists of time to become Greek colony of Pharos since 385 BC. Latter ruled by Rome and Byzantium, since 7th centruy by Neretva rules of Croatian origin and so on.In medieval times it was one of the main centers of Croatian literacy as well as culture (e.g. the arsenals were made into a theatre once the military issues were no longer important).
According to the Statutes of the city at Statut Grada Hvara, 5.11.2001, Službeni glasnik Grada Havara, <www.hvar.hr>, the coat of arms of Hvar is: per fess azure St. Stephen the Pope siting on a throne or and or on a base azure the city of Hvar argent: embatteled walls edged with two towers each topped with a blue flag opened in the middle between a church and the arsenal and behind it a castle on a rock. This is the historical coat of arms of the city. The Laszowski book [lsv39] already showes the same coat of arms with minor differences - the stain is show as a king  (with a fleur-de-lis sceptre, hungarian St. Stephen's crown, halo and an orb) and the city is somewhat differently rendered (still it is the same idea). For us may be interesting that the flag at the fortreses there were drawn (and blazoned) as being tribar of blue-white-blue, which may indicate the historical pattern of municipal flags that we should look for in further research.
The flag is blue with the coat of arms bordered white set in the middle. The ceremonial flag is the same, made of silk and with golden fringe.
Željko Heimer, 29 July 2006

The official gazette of Stari Grad include: Odluka o raspisivanju natjecaja za idejno rješenje heraldickog znakovlja Grada Hvara, 17.05.1993. Službeni glasnik Opcine Hvar, br. 2/1993, 16.08.1993. str. 85. This decision issues a concourse for the coat of arms and flag for the City of Hvar.
The next issue of the gazette again deals with Hvar: Odluka o grbu Grada Hvara, 16.12.1993, Službeni glasnik Opcine Hvar, br. 3/1993, 28.12.1993. str. 116 The decision describes the coat of arms basically of the same design as the current one, only outlined with a golden double wattle ornament. Regarding the flag, it is only mentioned that the coat of arms is alowed to be used on the flag.  
Željko Heimer, 29 August 2009


Coat of Arms


image by Željko Heimer, 29 July 2006