All residents who were previously unaware of what appears in Bolesławiec’s coat of arms have an excellent opportunity to find out. On the Bolesławiec market square, in front of the town hall entrance, the coat of arms of our town has been laid from paving stones. The renovation of the market square and Bolesława Prusa Street will, however, continue for several more months. It is scheduled to be completed in October 2007. The investment will cost nearly PLN 4.3 million.
The oldest seal bearing the coat of arms of our town, now missing, was attached to a diploma from 1303. It was found in the archive of the Magdalene Sisters’ convent in Nowogrodziec. The coat of arms of Bolesławiec at that time depicted only two towers. Between them, on the gable wall, there was a trefoil rosette. In the gate, as today, there was a Silesian eagle, except that its head was turned to the left. The towers of the former coat of arms were topped with crosses, while the gable wall was topped with something resembling a crowned dove, a symbol of the Holy Spirit. After some time, the eagle’s head was turned toward heraldic dexter. From the 16th century onward, the gable wall was replaced by a third tower. The coat of arms has survived in this form to the present day.
(GA information, photos by MZ)