Bernd
10/15/2018 (Mon) 11:09:32
No.20060
del
Irkutsk region flag. Here is the story: before 19th century the tiger was a symbol of Irkutsk region and was represented on coat of arms. It was called "babr" - Siberian dialect word that mean tiger. Coat of arms contained "babr who holds sable (marten) in the mouth".
But there is another word in common Russian, "bobr" - a beaver. So, at some point heraldists in capital didn't understand that word and replaced babr with bobr. Painters tried to fulfill the request by adding big beaver-like tail and beaver feet to tiger.
Error of course was noticed, but modern version of region logo still features that "babr", now for historical purposes.