Bat (heraldry)

Valencia city's arms.

Palma de Mallorca's arms.

Former arms of Palma de Mallorca with the winged dragon crown known as Cimera de la Festa de l'Estendard withou helm. 17th century.

Fraga coat of arms.

Barcelona coat of arms with the Royal Winged Dragon (Vibra) crown and the helmet (1627)

Burgee of the Royal Valencia Yacht Club.

The bat as a heraldic symbol appears mostly in the coats of arms of towns of the former Crown of Aragon. The coats of arms of certain cities in eastern Spain, like Valencia, Palma de Mallorca and Fraga have the bat over the shield.

Formerly the Barcelona city coat of arms also had a bat crowning it, but the bat was removed at the beginning of the 20th century.

The use of the bat as a heraldic symbol is prevalent in the territories of the former Crown of Aragon and it is little used elsewhere. However, it can be found in a few places, like in the coats of arms of the city of Albacete, in Spain, as well as the town of Montchauvet (Yvelines), in France. Outside of the European continent, the coat of arms of Santa Fe de Antioquia has multiple bats. It was granted to the town in 1545 by Charles I of Castile and Aragon and his mother Joanna of Castile.

Certain Spanish soccer club badges, like the Valencia CF and the Llevant Unió Esportiva, have a bat on them. The ancient badge of the FC Barcelona, used only during the 1899-1906 period, had a small bat crowning it as well.

The Burgee of the Royal Valencia Yacht Club (Reial Club Nàutic de València) displays a bat on a golden field in its center.

Lo Rat Penat, a political organization based in Valencia in 1878, was named after the heraldic bat. Established by Constantí Llombart, Teodor Llorente and Fèlix Pizcueta, its aim was originally to foster a movement similar to the Catalan Renaixença in the region of Valencia.

Origins

The heraldic use of the bat in Valencia, Catalonia and the Balearic Islands has its origins in a winged dragon (vibra or vibria) that was crowning king James I of Aragon's helmet or cimera reial. This is the most widely accepted theory, although there is also a legend that says that thanks to the humble intervention of a bat, king James I was able to win a crucial battle against the Saracens that allowed him to win Valencia for his kingdom.

See also

• Dragons in Catalan mythology
• Catalan symbols
• James I of Aragon
• Crown of Aragon

External links

• Blason de Valence Template:Fr
• Cimera del Casal de Barcelona c.
• Cimera de la Festa de l'Estendard c.
• Barcelona coat of arms c.
• Lo Rat Penat c.
• El ratpenat - Homenatge indirecte al València CF c.