The Lion of St. mark, patron saint of venice
Such lions are found everywhere in venice
If the lion has an open book in its paw, it was made at a time when venice was at peace. If it has a closed book, it was made at a time when Venice was at war, and thus had no time for intellectual pursuits.
Cracked by Vishal, Kashyap and anon
3 comments:
This is the evangelistic symbol of St. Mark the Evangelist - a winged lion, now used as a symbol of Venice, especially on its flags. The 1st pic is at the entrance of the St. Mark's Basilica, the cathedral of Venice. The Lion with the open book indicates peace - and it quotes "Pax Tibi Marce Evangelista Meus" ("peace to you, Mark my Evangelist"). When Venice is at war however, the book is closed (2nd pic) - the closed book indicates war.
So, historically, whenever Venice was peaceful, the flag of Venice was made with the book open and when Venice was at war the flag was made with the book closed (and the lion having a sword in its paw) as a symbol of violence / war / absence of peace.
Vishal
St.Mark's Lion
The one on top has an open book
THe one below has a closed book and a sword-this is a variant of the one above which was used generally at times of war and the one above at other times.
a winged lion with an open book implies peace while the contrary, with the book closed, implies war.
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