Panevėžys (county)

Heraldry of the World
Civic heraldry of Lithuania - Lietuvas Heraldika

PANEVĖŽYS COUNTY

Origin/meaning

he arms were granted on July 7, 2004.

The early origin of Panevezys county is the ancient Upyte land. It became the local principality in the early 13th century and later (probably in the mid 14th century) was incorporated into Trakai duchy. However Upyte remained the significant administrative center, and the "Upyte land" has not disappeared from the documents. The Upyte itself was not growing, and the administration of land moved first to Ramygala and later to Panevezys. In 1564 the Upyte district (pavietas) was established inside the Trakai province. Its administrative center was the Panevezys city, but the name was kept for the tradition.

The district used the seals with National Arms. Their design was copied from the State minor seal but simplified, and the horse had no horsecloth. During the first decades of rule of Russian Empire, the seal with Russian eagle in the upper part and the Lithuanian knight in the lower part was used.

After the uprising of 1831, the Upyte district was renamed to Panevezys district.

In 1837 the governor of Vilnius province Dmitry Bantysh-Kamenski provided the first project of new arms of Panevezys district: the Vilnius province arms in the upper part and the plough in the lower part. The plough should symbolize the agriculture of district. In 1844 the Panevezys district was reassigned to the Kaunas province. The project was provided again, with the arms of Kaunas province in the upper part. The governor of Kaunas province Fedor Mirkovich wrote on the project: "Wooden plough instead of plough". Emperor Nicholas I granted the arms on April 6, 1845: in the upper part the obelisk (the arms of Kaunas province), and in the lower part on silver background the brown wooden plough with steel share.

In 1861 Bernhard Koehne provided the new project. He pointed up the wooden plough is not a heraldic figure, and proposed the silver arms with red bent and two black ploughshares. The arms of Kaunas province was moved to free corner. The arms had three-tower mural crown and the decoration of two golden wheat spikes, bent with the red Alexander strip. The crown and Alexander strip should symbolize the district, and spikes should symbolize the agriculture. Though more heraldic, this project was not confirmed. The arms of 1845 was used till 1915.

When the Republic of Lithuania has established the Panevezys municipality, it modified the arms: instead of obelisk two crossed sheaves of linen were shown in the upper part. First time the plough was shown in the lower part, but soon the wooden plough went back to arms.

In 1969 these arms were granted to the Panevezys city. In 1993 the city got back its own old symbol (the mural gate), and the arms of 19-20th centuries were granted to Panevezys district.

Discussing the arms for the Panevezys county, the heraldry commission decided coming back not to the arms of 1845 but to the knight used in Upyte since the late 16th century. Also the Panevezys city is considered the contemporary capital of Aukštaitija region, therefore both arms have the quite similar design, originating from the State minor seal of mid 16th century. The colors of Panevezys county arms were changed to black knight on silver background, to differentiate it from the National Arms. The red mural line was added on the bottom, binding the county arms with the Upyte new arms. That symbolizes that Panevezys county continues the tradition of Upyte district.