[alfa] Re: Logo history

[Joe Elliott <jee@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I too spent my childhood thinking that the serpent had a sword in his 
mouth, until I bought my GTV-6 and got a good luck at the wheel 
center caps.

I can't comment on the gender or age of the human figure, but I read 
somewhere that that part of the Visconti coat of arms came from an 
insignia on the shield of a Muslim slain by a Visconti ancestor 
during the crusades.

YMMV, but I bet some historian actually knows the answer,
Joe

At 5:50 AM +0000 11/29/04, alfa-digest wrote:

> Date: Sun, 28 Nov 2004 10:56:41 -0800
> From: "Jef Fowler" <jef@domain.elided>
> Subject: [alfa] RE: Logo history
>
> Don't remember/can't find (it was googled) where this came from;
>
> "Alfa Romeo Logo: the Visconti ducal coat of arms is represented by a shield
> bearing a serpent with a babe in its mouth, surmounted by a crown. The
> Visconti family recollects that  back in year 800  one of their ancestors
> had killed, in the vicinity of Milan, a serpent that poisoned infants just
> by breathing on them. The other half of the Alfa Romeo logo, the red cross
> set against a white background, stems on the other hand from the banner of
> the city of Milan."
>
> Also http://www.homdrum.no/alfa/alfa_history_logo.html is a good Alfa site.
> Real nice design.
>
> I originally thought the 'human' was a sword rammed down the serpents
> throat.
>
> Jef
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