Why were there so many noble Medieval (some even reached our days) crests and symbols in Europe with lions on them?

they still had lions in north africa and the near east then if im not mistaken

lol @OP if they had real dragons obv they had lions too dummy ;)

I have no idea whether or not lions were used as entertainment in Ancient Rome, according Film/TV they were. If they were used then it's pretty understandable how they came to be on heralds.

Also, in Britain at least, lions started to become less and less common, becoming replaced by bulls, boards and even swans by the 15th century.

boars*

If anyone has an example of a board (card, skate, etc) then please show.

Boars are fucking great as a European symbol.

Why? Bear, wolves and moose's makes good symbols

If you read enough about boars you'll know. If you release a pig into the wild and it becomes a wild big / boar / hog, you'll never tame it again. Plus, it's still a pig, so it works as an anti-Islamic symbol aswell.
They're also one of the few animals who legit fight to the death if threatened. I love boars, I spent a lot of time studying them in college.

At the time, the new nation was still at war with England, and the fierce-looking bird seemed to be an appropriate emblem. But from the start, the eagle was a controversial choice. Franklin scowled at it. "For my part," he declared, "I wish the eagle had not been chosen as the representative of this country. He is a bird of bad moral character; he does not get his living honestly. You may have seen him perched in some dead tree where, too lazy to fish for himself, he watches the labor of the fishing hawk and, when that diligent bird has at length taken a fish and is bearing it to his nest for his young ones, the bald eagle pursues him and takes the fish. With all this injustice, he is never in good case."
Some people have since questioned whether the eagle would have been chosen to adorn the seal had the nation not been at war. A year after the Treaty of Paris ended the conflict with Great Britain, Franklin argued that the turkey would have been a more appropriate symbol. "A much more respectable bird and a true native of America," he pointed out. Franklin conceded that the turkey was "a little vain and silly," but maintained that it was nevertheless a "bird of courage" that "would not hesitate to attack a grenadier of the British guards who should presume to invade his farm yard with a red coat on." Congress was not convinced, however. The eagle remained our national symbol.

Exactly. The average noble didn;t hunt many lions and dragons. They did hunt boars and clearly were impressed by their aggression.

You're right, it is interesting that they have such an affection for them but they're not native to that region. Perhaps if they were they would fear them more or treat with them differently. From far away they seem impressive I guess.

They did have bears, buffalo, wolves, and boars though, which I believe are featured on some crests.

This. Lions are spoken of in the bible frequently, Europe was very Christian for a long time.
They were also imported.

>"I wish the eagle had not been chosen as the representative of this country. He is a bird of bad moral character; he does not get his living honestly. You may have seen him perched in some dead tree where, too lazy to fish for himself, he watches the labor of the fishing hawk and, when that diligent bird has at length taken a fish and is bearing it to his nest for his young ones, the bald eagle pursues him and takes the fish. With all this injustice, he is never in good case."

Sounds like the perfect symbol for America.

Unicorns didn't exist either. Myths are important to a society's development. Besides its all about dat symbolism with heraldic shit anyways.

Crests and shit weren't actually that big of a deal. If anything, all it did was decide your military uniform and what color you dressed in. "Crests" and "mottoes" and whatnot is just tourist bait.

The killer whale (also known as Orca or Blackfish) is an important medicine animal to the Native American tribes of the Northwest Coast. Killer whales are considered a particular symbol of power and strength, and catching sight of one is considered a momentous omen. Some tribes, such as the Tlingit, view the killer whale as a special protector of humankind and never hunted killer whales (although they were accomplished whale hunters of other species.) The Kwakiutl tribes believed that the souls of marine hunters turned into killer whales upon their death, just as the souls of forest hunters turned into wolves. For this reason, there were a number of special rituals regarding the killing of a killer whale, so that its spirit could be reborn as a human once again.

Not B. Franklin's vision of America, though.

Rest in peace, sweet prince. ;__;

>Why were there so many noble Medieval (some even reached our days) crests and symbols in Europe with lions on them?

How many are there?

...

Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

Our Rabbis taught: One may oil and massage the bowels [of an invalid] on the Sabbath,10 and snakes and serpents may be charmed [to render them tame and harmless] on the Sabbath, and an article may be placed over the eye on the Sabbath [to protect it]. R. Simeon b. Gamaliel said: This applies only to articles which may be handled;11 but those which may not be handled12 are forbidden; nor may demons be consulted on the Sabbath. R. Jose said: This is forbidden even on week-days.

A fair few. I had a folder of heralds I found, dating from 1066-1500. Obviously I didn't have every herald from the time frame but I did have around 250-300, and around 20-30% had lions/leopards. They were by far the most popular crest to have.

I also found one German knight with a dachshund on his herald and another with a bee.

>this much kike propaganda on Veeky Forums