![[Duurswold polderboard]](../images/n/nl~pb-du.gif)
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by Jarig Bakker, 2 Dec 2003
Official name: Waterschap Duurswold; seat: Slochteren, Groningen province.
Flag: three horizontal stripes of blue, white and black, proportioned
3:2:1; at the hoist a vertical yellow stripe of 1/3 flagheight.
On the exhibition "Wapens en Vlaggen langs Fivel en Eems" (coats of
arms and flag along the rivers Fivel and Eems), Appingedam, 1979, one could
admire the beautiful begging boxes of the polderboard Duurswold. They show
the arms: "Per fess, top azure, bottom silver, with a base sable, from
which is issued a cornplant, above the dividing line gold, below it green".
It is unknown where it originates, but it probably belonged to one
of the old "zijlvesten" (= polderboards) which merged in 1870 to form the
present waterschap.
This arms and the arms of the family Fraylema in reversed colors form
in a divided shield the polderboard arms from 1959.
The right part of the shield is the base for the flag., while the cornplant
has been changed into the yellow vertical stripe.
The Board of directors added the arms in the hoist-top.
Source Vexilla Nostra #122, Sep-Oct 1982. text: J.A. de Boo.
Jarig Bakker, 2 Dec 2003
If I recall correctly the polderboard accepted my design graciously
- but failed to use it.
J.A. de Boo, 18 May 2004
![[Eemszijlvest polderboard]](../images/n/nl~pb-ez.gif)
by Shipmate.
Official name: Waterschap Eemszijlvest; seat: Appingedam, Groningen
province.
Flag adopted: 31 Oct 1986; design: unknown.
Flagdescription: A white hoist with in top a red crowned harpy, and
in bottom a red Roman church with four spires, and a fly of seven wavy
stripes of green and white.
Eemszijlvest was formed on 1 Jan 1986 by the merger of the polderboards
of Fivelingo, Duurswold and Oldambt.
On 1 Jan 2000 it became part of the Noorderzijlvest.
Source: Vexilla Nostra, #236, 2003, text: Marcel van Westerhoven.
Jarig Bakker, 17 May 2004
![[Noorderzijlvest polderboard]](../images/n/nl~pb-nt.gif)
by Shipmate.
Official name: Waterschap Noorderzijlvest; seat: Groningen.
Flag adopted: 5 Apr 2000; design: Consulentschap voor de Heraldiek
in de provincie Groningen.
Flagdescription: Four wavy stripes proportioned 2:1:1:2 - white, green,
white, green, with in top hoist a red heart, cloverleaf-formy indented,
and in bottom hoist a white fleur-de-lis.
In 1995 and 2000 reorganisations of the polderboards in Western Groningen
and North Drenthe took place. The Groninger polderboards Hunsingo, Westerkwartier,
Electra and Ommelander Zeedijk, as well as the Drentse polderboards Noordenveld
and Smilde merged in 1995 to form one new polderboard. In 2000 parts of
the polderboard Eemszijlvest and the Zuiveringschap Drenthe
were joined. It also received the task of waterpurification of the province
of Groningen. The new poderboard is
now in charge of watermanagement, (sea)water-floodprevention, and water-purification.
All former polderboards had arms. Only three had a flag: Westerkwartier,
Eemszijlvest and the Zuiveringschap Drenthe (which was in fact a logo on
bedsheet). To the Noorderzijlvest was granted a new coat of arms on 15
Aug 1996. A flag was adopted on 20 May 1996, but nobody cared to write
that down, so the same flag was officially adopted 5 Apr 2000.
The flag is based on the arms. The heart represents Groningen; it is
in hact a stylized waterlily-leaf, as it occurs in flag and arms of the
Ommelanden - and therefore connects also to Fryslân (in olden days
the Ommelanden were known as "the Frisian Ommelanden".) Waterlily-leaves,
also known as "pompeblêden" symbolize water-purity.
The fleur-de-lis is Mary's symbol, and represents Drenthe, which has
the Holy Virgin an its provincial arms. The origins of those arms is the
seal of the monastery Mariënkamp in Assen, which played an important
rôle in North Drenthe.
Source: Vexilla Nostra, #236, 2003, text: Marcel van Westerhoven.
Jarig Bakker, 17 May 2004
![[Oldambt polderboard]](../images/n/nl~pb-oa.gif)
by Jarig Bakker, 2 Dec 2003
Official name: Waterschap Oldambt; seat: Winschoten, Groningen province.
Flag: Five equally wide horizontal stripes of green and white with
a red church with four spires of 3/5 flagheight.
On the map of the "Groninger Ommelanden" of 1678 of the Brothers
Coenders there are three polderboard-arms, namely the Aduarder Zijlvest,
the Winsumer- or Schaphalster Zijlvest and the Generale Zijlvest
der drie Delfzijlen. These arms live on in the arms of the present
polderboards of Westerkwartier, Hunsingo and Fivelingo.
These arms have in common that they have a green quarter with one or
more wavy bars, which might mean that one or more of them have been designed
especially for this occasion. It is certain that the Generale Zijlvest
had previously a seal with different arms with the harpy from the arms
of the East-Frisian Sierksema family. This coat of arms can still be found
in de divided arms of Delfzijl municipality.
It appears that the polderboard of Termunterzylvest wanted to follow
this tradition in 1725, for on the beautiful parapet of the lock at Termunterzijl
the arms of the "Dyckgrave en Overste Schepper des Termunterzyls"
(dike-lord and creator of T.) is supported by a "rocaille" (stony
ornamented) escutcheon, left (heraldic right) with a church of four spires
from the arms of Oldambt, right with two wavy fesses. This may be seen
as an attempt to unite the Oldambt coat of arms with that of the Termunter
Zijlvest. This union never took place, neither for the Termunter zijlvest,
nor for its successor, the Oldambt polderboard. The colors are hard to
reconstruct, but on a lost escutcheon, which has been depicted in several
paintings, they are silver on red. However Groningen
city was overlord of Oldambt, so the possibility of silver on green can't
be excluded.
Based on these data is at the occasion of the exhibition "Wapens
en Vlaggen langs Fivel en Eems" (Appingedam, 1979) a flag was designed
for the polderboard Oldambt.
A flag with five equally wide stripes of green and white makes the
connection with the combined arms of 1725, which was never officially recognized.
The colors are in the Groninger polderboard-tradition, and symbolize as
well that Groningen was the old overlord. The colors red and silver
refer to the the arms of Oldambt, but are unproven for the Oldambt polderboard..
Unfortunately the Board of Directors of the polderboard so far has
done nothing with the design.
Source Vexilla Nostra #122, Sep-Oct 1982. text: J.A. de Boo..
Jarig Bakker, 2 Dec 2003
If I recall correctly the polderboard accepted my design graciously
- but failed to use it.
J.A. de Boo, 18 May 2004
![[Westerkwartier polderboard]](../images/n/nl~pb-wk.gif)
by Jarig Bakker, 17 May 2004
Official name: Waterschap Westerkwartier; seat: Aduard, Groningen province.
Flag adopted 12 Jun 1989; design ?
Description: On a red hoist of 1/3 flaglength a black dragon's head
over a white vertical sword; a fly of five wavy stripes of green and white.
The flag is directly derived from the polderboard's arms. That was
granted 16 Mar 1890, and originated in the arms of the Aduarder Zijlvest,
granted 20 Feb 1816.
Description of the arms: quartered: I and IV in silver St. George with
the dragon of natural colors on a grass-soil; II and III in green two wavy
fesses of silver; the shield surmounted by a golden crown of five leaves.
The Aduarder Zijlvest is very old. It was related to the Abbey of Aduard.
In the Middle Ages monks from that abbey made polders in the sea, and were
charged with the task of managing and checking those polders. This led
to the foundation of the "zijlvest" (zijl = lock, vest = charter). Zijlvest
is a regional term, but not in the regional vernicular...
Source: Vexilla Nostra #172 (1991?).
Jarig Bakker, 17 May 2004
