The coat of arms of Austria has been used since the end of World War I to symbolize Austria.
Symbolism
The double-headed eagle, symbolizing the old Austro-Hungarian Empire, was replaced with a single-headed eagle. The one with the double-headed eagle has been very similar to the symbol of Byzantine Empire, the so called "Empire of the Greeks", which dominated Europe until 13th century.
The old shield of the Duchy of Austria is located on the eagle's chest; this same design forms the basis for the flag of Austria. The eagle's claws hold a golden sickle and a golden hammer. The broken iron chain between the two claws indicates the liberation from Nazism and was added after World War II.
An approximate English translation of the blazon would be:
Gules a fess Argent, escutcheon on the breast of an eagle displayed Sable, langued Gules, beaked Or, crowned with a mural crown of three visible merlons Or, armed Or, dexter talon holding sickle, sinister talon holding hammer, both talons shackled with chain broken Argent.
From 1934, to the German annexation in 1938 Austria used a different coat of arms, which consisted of a double-headed eagle without the broken chains.
The coat-of-arms in numismatics
The coat-of-arms has been the main motive of many collector coins, one of the most recent is the 20 euro Post War Period coin, minted in September 17, 2003. The obverse of the coin shows the coat-of-arms flanked by the Austrian flag and the European Union flag.
See also
External links
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