XIX a. pirmojo trečdalio Panevėžio rotušės antspaudai - senosios miesto heraldikos šaltinis

LTPanevėžys iki XVIII a. pabaigos miesto teisių ir herbo neturėjo. 1791 m., kai Panevėžiui iš naujo buvo patvirtintas pavieto centro statusas, jis gavo teisę įkurti savivaldą, pasigaminti miesto herbinį spaudą su architektūrine simbolika. Vėliau ji pateko į tris pirmųjų Rusijos valdymo dešimtmečių Panevėžio miesto rotušės antspaudus. Dėl duomenų stokos sunku pasakyti, ar tie statiniai turėjo kokį nors ryšį su realiais Panevėžio pastatais. Neabejotina tik tai, kad XIX a. pirmojo trečdalio antspauduose pavaizduoti simboliai yra kol kas seniausi žinomi Panevėžio miesto heraldikos ikonografiniai šaltiniai. Remiantis jais, 1993 m. buvo atkurtas ir oficialiai patvirtintas miesto herbas.

ENPanevėžys had no city rights until the end of the 18th century although it was the official seat of seimeliai (noblemen assemblies) and courts of Upytė County since the second half of the 16th century. Only in 1791 when the status of the County centre was confirmed for Panevėžys anew it acquired the right to elect the authorities and judicial bodies even thought it had no privilege of the ruler, i. e. to establish self-government and to make the city stamp with coat of arms. Judging from the three stamps of Panevėžys Town Hall of the first decades of the Russian rule that were found we can state that this right was implemented. The three-tower building (defence gate) depicted in the stamps had to appear as early as the end of the 18th century, around 1791-1792 as the Russian authorities did not create any new coats of arms in our region until the 4th decade of the 19th century. The defence architecture chosen for Panevėžys coats of arms most likely reflected political reality of that time, the striving to reform the state, to strengthen its defence in order to resist the increasing aggression of the neighbouring countries, first of all that of Russia and Prussia. Because of the lack of data it is hard to say if that defence architecture had any relation to real buildings of Panevėžys town. Only one thing is unquestioned – that the defence symbols in stamps of the first third of the 19th century are the oldest known sources of Panevėžys city heraldry so far. In 1993 the city coat of arms as well as city flag and stamps were reproduced according to them and officially confirmed.