ARTEFAUR
OFFICIAL MASCOT
FĂUREL: Artefaur's mascot
The wisent gone soft toy
The European bison (Bison bonasus, Carl Linné, 1758), also known as wisent or the European wood bison, is a Eurasian species of bison, one of two extant species of bison. The wisent (Romanian: zimbrul or bâcul, coming from the Slavic word zombor, not to be confused with zâmbrul, which is a species of pinetree, pinus cembra) is one of the powerful Romanian symbols, an important part of Romania’s natural heritage and national identity, through legends, myths, stories and place names (hills, forests, villages, valleys, glades, etc.) They say that Moldavia, one of the main historical provinces that united have formed modern Romania, was founded subsequently to the chase of a wisent. Hence, the head of the wisent is wide spread in Romanian heraldry, although in time has been often confused with the aurochs, the extinct ancestor of domestic cattle.
After the ancient flags and coat of arms of Moldavia it was also drafted the Moldavian Bull's Head (Romanian: capul de bour, lit. "aurochs" head) which is the first Romanian postage stamp and the first stamp from Southeast Europe, renowned for its rarity and its value, due to the fact that it was a political statement against the Ottoman Empire that was exercising suzerainty at the time over the principality. A copy of a 19th century newspaper (Zimbrul şi Vulturul ("The Wisent and the Eagle")) bearing eight of these rare Romanian stamps, was sold at an 2006 auction for the total price of 1.1 million $, the highest ever paid for a copy of a newspaper.
After it has been extinct from the area for 200 years, Europe’s largest living wild land mammal is coming back in reservations but also in the wild. Romania is the 9th European country with a bison population living in the wild, in the Ţarcului Mountains rewilding area, after the biggest-ever bison reintroduction and transportation to have taken place in Europe. Free-living bison can also be found in Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Poland, Slovakia, Russia, and Germany.
We celebrated this great event by creating this soft toy for grown ups, which has quickly gained everyone's favor, becoming Artefaur's official mascot and the perfect souvenir to take with you from Romania.
.
