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Deutsche Wappen (Gemeindewappen/Kreiswappen)
German Civic Heraldry

AU am RHEIN

District (Kreis) : Rastatt
State : Baden-Württemberg

Origin/meaning:
The oldest known seal of Au dates from 1520 and shows an eye. The eye was a canting element (from Auge, eye). The two later seals also show the arms with the eye. In a seal from 1718 the eye appears above a duck's claw. In the 19th century the eye completely disappears and the seal shows the duck's claw in a circle.


The seal of Au from 1880.

In November 1900 the State Archives proposed as arms the eye, as it had a longer history than the claw. The council approved the new arms in January 1901.

The council, however, was not very satisfied by the eye, or the claw. So finally in 1978 the present arms were granted, showing a heron. The heron is taken as a local symbol, as there is a large colony of these birds in the municipality. The base of the arms shows the river Rhine.

Literature : Zier and Fütterer 1966; John et al., 1990.


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