Have you ever noticed the little symbol located in the top left hand corner of a lot of the street name signs in Puerto de la Cruz?
Do you know what it is? Or what it symbolises?
WHAT DOES A COAT OF ARMS SYMBOLISE?
Dating back to early Medieval Europe, a coat of arms was the principal part of a system of hereditary symbols and it was used primarily to establish identity during fights and battles.
Eventually Arms evolved to denote family descent, adoption, alliance, property ownership, and, eventually, profession
HISTORY OF THE COAT OF ARMS OF PUERTO DE LA CRUZ
The Coat of Arms of Puerto de la Cruz was adopted on the 4th June 1964 by the Spanish Government.
On 20th June it was published in the official gazette Number 148, page 8023.
WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?
As you can see, in the centre is a red tongued, green dragon which watched over the golden apples of the Mythical Garden of Heperides (which allegedly identify with the Valley of Orotava).
Just above the dragon, and more or less resting on its back the red Latin Cross representing the name of the town (Cruz).
Under it’s claws is a field of blue with three undulating strips in the colour siler, representing the waves of the sea and highlighting the importance of the role that the port of the cross (Puerto de la Cruz) played in the commercial and economic growth of the island with America.
The sabre key overlaid on the blue represents the key that opened the way to the routes to the Indies.
The Crown of course reflects the Monarchy of the Catholic Kings.
WHERE CAN YOU SEE THESE COATS OF ARMS DISPLAYED?
As previously mentioned, they are displayed on the signs for the street names throughout the town of Puerto de la Cruz. They are also displayed on most official signs to, for example on signs prohibiting parking in certain areas.
Perhaps though the most the impressive place to see them is in the Plaza de Europa, the large public square, located at the Batería de Santa Barbara - a defensive fortification built in the 18th century to protect the town from pirates.
Plaza de Europa was redeveloped in 1992, forming a large open space over an underground car park.
The current offices of the local government (Ayuntamiento) are located in the buildings facing the Plaza and the Coat of Arms of Puerto de la Cruz are mounted in stone at the entrance of these buildings.
