CIRCA - 1451 🇲🇪 - a gold dual-headed eagle (the national coat of arms) centered on a crimson field, bordered in gold
HISTORY: The 1st appearance of the eagle ☬ coat of arms ⛨ on crimson as a Montenegrin flag was in 15c medieval Zeta,
drawn from imperial Byzantine iconography🔍, (from the regions time under it's rule.)
Variations were revived ~1850's to 1918; with ♔ crown & lion 🦁 shield ⛉, then the eagle ☬ on
a red-blue🔍-white tricolor and eventually just the tricolor, until the eagle 🦅 was re-adopted
with a gold border in 2004, (while a Union of Serbia & Montenegro.)
VEXILLOLOGY:* Chosen to emphasize continuity with pre-Yugoslav monarchical traditions to assert it's independence;
The CRIMSON Field officially stands for fidelity, though popular sentiment links it to the sacrifices of historical defenders; blood 🩸 spilled in battles for autonomy, such as the 1945 Battle of Pljevlja or earlier Ottoman resistances.
The EAGLE 🦅 Coat of Arms ⛨ represents an enduring history of Montenegrin statehood - symbol of predatory vigilance & territorial grasp - Dual ☬ Heads representing theocratic prince-bishops with authority over spiritual & temporal domains.
(Heraldically one head facing east🔍, the other west, = watching for threats from multiple directions, like Byzantine, ruling over eastern & western realms, though in Montenegro's case it might more accurately reflect surrounding treats in the Balkan🔍 region more than wide spread national influence)
It's ♔ Crown + cross topped Scepter 𓐩 & blue Orb / globus cruciger, in it's talons;denote monarchical power, authority & Christian dominion
The horizontal bicolor ⛉ shield of blue/ sky over green /fields with.a rampant 🦁 lion = strength, vigilance & dynastic sovereignty.
The BORDER is for royal prestige - from historic banners of the Prince-Bishopric & /or the later 'Tsar' Stephan the Little.
The GOLD elements signify prosperity & imperial heritage [representing sovereignty & divine sanction in heraldic tradition as the metal of kingship & heavenly light; symbol of the emperor's role as God's vicar on earth, plus purity; from medieval alchemical traditions linking gold to incorruptible perfection]