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Umbriaga the Cat – printable coloring page for kids

Have you ever heard of a cat that isn’t afraid of water? Umbriaga the Cat sailed with sailors from Szczecin, a port city in northwest Poland near the German border. He often dipped his ginger fur while traveling on the waters of Mare Dambiensis, the “Dąbie Sea.” This is what sailors called Lake Dąbie—one of the largest lakes in Poland, on the Oder River.

Printable coloring page: Umbriaga the cat

The coat of arms of Szczecin – printable coloring page for kids

Szczecin’s coat of arms shows a crowned griffin head on a blue shield. The griffin has red feathers, and its crown and beak are gold. The symbol comes from the Griffin dynasty that ruled Pomerania. The blue shield points to the region’s link to the Baltic Sea.

Pomeranian Dukes’ Castle in Szczecin – printable coloring page for kids

This is the oldest and most impressive home of the House of Griffins, a knightly dynasty that ruled Pomerania for almost 600 years. The Griffins were one of the longest-ruling princely families in Europe.

Griffin – printable coloring page for kids

The symbol of the Griffin family was the griffin—a mythical creature with the head of an eagle and the body of a lion. That is why not only Szczecin, but many other Pomeranian towns, have a griffin in their coats of arms.

The clock at the Pomeranian Dukes’ Castle – printable coloring page for kids

At the Pomeranian Dukes’ Castle, a Baroque clock catches the eye. It has a grotesque face (a mascaron), and the clock hand points to the tip of its nose. It dates from 1693 and was designed by Johann von Goethe.

The Legend of the Tower of Seven Coats

At the foot of the Pomeranian Dukes’ Castle stands the Maiden’s Tower, also called the Tower of Seven Coats. It is a remnant of the city’s medieval defensive walls.

According to the legend, one of the Pomeranian dukes ordered seven coats made from a very elegant, expensive fabric. The tailor’s wife liked the material so much that she begged her husband to sew a dress for her from the leftover pieces. The duke and his whole court admired the coats—they were beautiful. But the duke’s joy did not last long. Soon someone told him they had seen the tailor’s wife walking through the city in a dress made of the same fabric. As punishment, the dishonest craftsman was locked in the castle tower, which has had this name ever since.

Sedina – patroness of Szczecin

Sedina was a goddess from Mount Olympus who loved sailors. One day she left the Greek mountain of the gods, boarded a ship, and together with Hermes and a faithful griffin set out into the unknown. She reached a place where a river flows into the sea and forms a wide delta. She chose one of the lonely hills as her new home. That is how, according to the legend, the city of Szczecin came to be. In the past, a fountain with Sedina stood on Tobrucki Square in Szczecin. Today, Szczecin is a port on the Oder River, close to the Baltic Sea.