Vladivostok Lawmakers Voted Down Revised Version of City Arms

VLADIVOSTOK. March 11. VOSTOK-MEDIA – The Committee on Local Self-Government, Law and Order of the Vladivostok City Duma has recommended Vladivostok lawmakers to reject the proposed amendments to the Statute on Coat of Arms of Vladivostok, a city Duma spokesman told Vostok-Media.

The project calls for supplementing the heraldic elements of the coat of arms of Vladivostok with five-pointed crown and two golden anchors placed crosswise and bound with the ribbon of the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky. The explanatory note to the amendments project states that the present-day coat of arms does not reflect in full the historic, cultural and local traditions of Vladivostok as the fortress city as well as the naval port.

The Committee Chairman Dmitry Penyaz reminded that project caused unfavorable remarks by the Legal Department of the City Duma. The Legal Department in its report proposes that the project should be amended by adding the missing documents and submitted to the Heraldic Council under the President of the Russian Federation for the heraldic expert examination.

Addressing the committee meeting, Prof. Valentin Anikeev said the formal description (blazon) of the coat of arms of Vladivostok, which was registered and enlisted in Vladivostok City Heraldic Registry, is very similar to that of the main part of the historic coat of arms, except for the nonprincipal part which is completely irrelevant at present.

“The blazon of the historic coat of arms reads as follows: “The shield is topped with the three-pointed golden tower crown, two anchors placed crosswise behind the shield and bound with the ribbon of the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky,” said the professor.

“That is, the crown, the anchors and the ribbon are merely framing elements and may be replaced with more up-to-date elements. The representative body of the local government may pass a resolution calling for supplementing the coat of arms of the city with appropriate elements, namely: the five-pointed golden tower crown – symbol of the constituent entity of the Federation; two golden anchors placed crosswise behind the shield and bound by two ribbons: the ribbon of the Order of Lenin on the right, and the ribbon of the Order of the October Revolution n the left,” he said.

According to Valentin Anikeev, the blazon of the coat of arms registered in the State Heraldic Registry would remain unchanged and the aforesaid supplements to the procedure of the official use of the city arms would not require any supplementary expert examination or registration.

As a result of the discussion the lawmakers agreed unanimously that the project is not yet ready to be passed by the City Duma. Along with the unfavorable remarks pertaining directly to the formal description of the coat of arms, it was stated that the project does not make economic sense, because it requires some extra funds from the city budget. On this ground, the committee recommended the City Duma to vote down the project.