Lier (Antwerpen)

LIER

Province : Antwerpen
Additions : 1977 Koningshooikt

Official blazon

(1810) D'argent à trois chevrons l'un sur I'autre de gueules, francquartier des villes de seconde classe qui est à dextre d'azur à un N d'or, surmonté d'une étoile rayonnante du même.
(1819) Van zilver beladen met drie roode kepers het schild gedekt met een gouden kroon en ter wederzijde vastgehouden door een met omgekeerde kop klimmende leeuw van goud.
(1838) Wit koleur, met dry roode kepers den eenen op den anderen, het wapen gedekt met eene gouden kroon en rustende op twee gouden leeuwen.
(1988) In zilver drie kepers van keel. Het schild getopt met een stedekroon met vijf torens van zilver en gehouden door twee omziende leeuwen van goud.

Origin/meaning

The arms were granted on December 13, 1988.

The arms of Lier show three chevrons of unknown origin. The chevrons appear for the first time on the second seal of the city, known since 1355. The seal shows two lions and a banner with the three chevrons. The chevrons appear in a shield only in the next seal from 1422. All later seals show the same arms, with two lion supporters. In all cases the lions are facing the shield, not backwards. The colours of the arms are known since the 16th century and have not changed since.

During the Napoleonic times the city was granted the arms of a city of the second rank, this meant that the city arms were augmented with a free quarter with an N and a star. These arms were officially granted on December 16, 1810.

After the independence of the Netherlands, Lier was granted arms on October 20, 1819.
These arms showed again the three chevrons, but now with the lions facing backwards. After the Belgian independance the arms were confirmed on June 30, 1838.

In 1988 the present arms were granted, in which only the crown was changed to a mural crown, inidicating that Lier already received city rights in the 13th century.

The arms in a 16th century manuscript
The arms in a 17th century manuscript
The arms in the Wapen- en Vlaggenboek van Gerrit Hesman (1708)
The arms of 1810
The arms of 1818/1838
The arms in the Koffie Hag/Café Hag albums +/- 1930
The arms on a police badge (source)
The arms on a Dutch Willem II cigar band
The arms in the city (source)

Literature: Anonymous : Van evers en heiligen - wapens en vlaggen van de gemeenten in de provincie Antwerpen. Antwerpen, 1998; Viane-Awouters and Warlop, 2002.