Barry of eight Gules and Argent, impaling Gules, on a trimount Vert a ducal coronet Or issuing therefrom a Patriarchal cross Argent
The seal of King Béla IV from his Golden BullReverse of the first double seal (1235–1241) of King Béla IV (1235–1270)Reverse of the second double seal (1366–1382) of King Louis I the Great (1342–1382). The modern design of the coat of arms of Slovakia by Ladislav Čisárik was based on this medieval Hungarian seal.[3]Coat of arms of King Louis I the Great (1364). Wall relief on the courtyard of Bojnice Castle.Reverse of the first double seal (1387–1405) of King Sigismund of Luxembourg (1387–1437)Programmes of the National Theatre reflecting the political changes of the revolution of 1848 in their depiction of the national coat of arms. Note that in modern usage the Holy Crown of Hungary on the coat of arms is not understood as a symbol of monarchy but as a symbol of the millennial tradition of Hungarian statehood.Arms of Hungary on the 1890 Austro-Hungarian florin coin; the right version adds the arms of FiumeCoat of Arms at Liberty Bridge in Budapest
The coat of arms of Hungary (Hungarian: Magyarország címere) was adopted on 3 July 1990, after the end of communist rule. The arms have been used before, both with and without the Holy Crown of Hungary, sometimes as part of a larger, more complex coat of arms, and its elements date back to the Middle Ages.
The shield is split into two parts:
The dexter (the right side from the bearer's perspective, the left side from the viewer's) features the so-called Árpád stripes, four Gules (red) and four Argent (silver) stripes. Traditionally, the silver stripes represent four rivers: Duna (Danube), Tisza, Dráva, and Száva.[4]
The sinister (the left side from the bearer's perspective, the right side from the viewer's) consists of an Argent (silver) double cross on Gules (red) base, situated inside a small Or (golden) crown, the crown is placed on the middle heap of three Vert (green) hills, representing the mountain ranges (trimount) Tátra, Mátra, and Fátra.
Atop the shield rests the Holy Crown of St. Stephen (Stephen I of Hungary, István király), a crown that remains in the Parliament building (Országház) in Budapest today.[5]