Abstract

This is an accepted article with a DOI pre-assigned that is not yet published.

The article discusses functions of the Polish national emblem in the context of political and religious symbolism in Poland. The examination of the Polish emblem - the white eagle - in its historical development provides a background to understanding various aspects of the national and political ideology. Through the analysis of different structural forms of the emblem, composed of various symbolic elements in changing combinations, an interpretation is made of the political process in Poland. A specific feature of this process was the fact that both sides of the political conflict between the regime and the democratic opposition used the same national symbols, but in different structural contexts, thus giving them different, sometimes contradictory meanings.

Publisher Notes

• This article was previously published by Museum Tusculanum Press.