The Coat of Arms

In a blue field, it represents a gold tower; over the door is a shield with seven guns and 15 boxes: seven blue and eight gold.  At the top there are two towers and between them is the image of Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria, the patron saint of the city.  The Medellín Coat of Arms was awarded by the Royal Decree issued by King Charles II in Madrid.

The Anthem

Chapter IV of Decree No. 151, dated February 20, 2002, regarding the principles and values.

Article 10. THE MEDELLÍN ANTHEM.  To unify the ideals of the región, adopt the Antioqueñan Anthem – words by Epifani Mejía and music by Gonzalo Vidal – as the anthem of the Municipality of Medellín.  It will be  sung in all official acts at which the Mayor of Medellín is present.

The Catleya Orchid (Catleya Trianae)

Originally from Colombia, this plant became the national symbol in 1834.  It is mainly found in the temperate regions.
   

The Flower Bearer (El Silletero)

Until the 1970s, it was possible to see the Silleteros could be seen travelling the neighborhood streets of Medellín, at the entrance to the cemeteries, in the church atriums awaiting the end of the first Mass, or in any of the marketplaces of the city, seeking buyers for their cargo brought from the countryside.  The Silleteros were not always flower growers.

They also came from virtually all of the surrounding rural area, corresponding to the municipalities of Rionegro, Guarne and the Village of Santa Elena, to the east of the city and the villages of San Cristóbal and San Antonio de Prado to the west.  They have always exerted an intense cultivation activity to supply the city with fresh garden produce.

Very early in the morning once or twice a week, the farmers came down to Medellín to come together at the now – defunct market in the Plaza de Cisneros; the producers from the village of Santa Elena could mostly be found in the Plaza de Flores, located to the east of the city, along the route of the tradition neighborhood of Buenos Aires.

This was their business routine at that time, and this beautiful tradition began to take shape.

Without abandoning his strong ties to gardening activities, the modern Silletero – more than a flower grower, which given him or her their sustenance – has become a craftsman who sporadically displays his virtues in the composition of floral arrangements.

His occupation of Silletero is linked to a massive human effort to overcome the obstacles of nature.  And therein lies his original function, which cements one of the most outstanding features of the Antioqueñan culture:  tenacity in the face of environmental challenges.

The Silletero is, then, a specialist in trails, paths, roads and mountains.  Long before he was a flower grower or a flower bearer, the Silletero is an element of the regional landscape as a cornerstone of the technology of transporting goods and travelers in the difficult, Central Andean topography.

The world quickly learned of the excellent climate of Medellín and its surrounding areas, reinforcing the image of “eternal spring” and the floral wealth of the region.  For some time, Colombian orchids have been sent to different collectors and members of garden clubs.  Antioquia has exported flowers regularly to satisfy the demand for flowers for domestic consumption toward and coast and internationally to the United States and Europe since the 1930s.