Pages: 393-403

This article discusses V. P. Kirilko’s thesis that the epigraphic plate of 1454 found in the Belgorod fortress reproduces a coat of arms of the Moldovan ruler Alexander II.
Our investigations tell that this plate shows Pan Stancuil’s coat of arms, who was an important statesman from 1432—1479. His personal emblem, engraved on a heraldic shield, can be identified as a schematic or geometric symbol in the shape of a tamga composed of two elements, a “Λ” on the top and a “Δ” on the bottom. The same symbol can be found on a sigillum of Pan Stanciul dated by 1436 and on some subtypes of Moldovan coins of the “cross with bars of equal length” type. These symbols seem to be motivated by the Tartars’s influence on the Carpathian Dniester region in the period predating formation of the Moldovan state.
Pan Stanciul paid, probably from his private funds, the mounting of the commemorative plate of 1454 (and 1452), as well as the construction of the two towers the plates were mounted on.

Keywords: Belgorod on the Dniester Fortress, 15th century, commemorative plates, coat of arms, Stanciul.

Information about author:

Lilia Dergacheva (Kishinev, Moldova). Doctor of History. Institute of Cultural Heritage of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova. Stefan cel Mare Bd., 1, Kishinev, MD-2000, Moldova
E-mail: [email protected]