| Added by |
 Italy
, with updated images by  Alain Martineau
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| General Description : | The winged lion has long been a traditional symbol of Venice. It is one symbol of Mark the Evangelist (the apostle), who has been the is the city's patron saint ever since his remains were taken from a tomb in Alexandria, Egypt, and brought to Venice in 828 AD. Venice's original patron saint had been St. Theodore of Amasea, a soldier-saint perhaps best known for battling a dragon (or, as a statue of him in Venice depicts it, a crocodile), but as Venice grew and became an important player in world affairs, it was felt that a more presitigious saint was needed. Depictions of St. Mark's lion can be found everywhere in Venice. There is a famous lion on the clocktower in the Piazza San Marco, a lion atop a column in the piazzetta outside the Palazzo Ducale, and lions everywhere throughout Venice in paintings and carved into marble on almost every building. Even the top award at the Venice Film Festival is called the Golden Lion. |
| Front Description : | The lion of Venice is usually depicted with its paw on an open book that contains the text Pax tibi, Marce, Evangelista meus. This is Latin, and means "Peace be upon you, O Mark, my Evangelist." Venetian legend has it that, while visiting the region of Italy that would later become Veneto, Mark was approached by an angel, greeted with those words, and told that the Venetian lagoon would be his ultimate resting place. |
| Height | 5.00 mm |
| Width | 78.00 mm |
| Material | Bronze |
| Catalog prices | No catalog prices set yet |
