The ''scrofa semilanuta'' (in

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

: "half-woollen boar") is an ancient emblem of the city of

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, dating back at least to the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

— and, according to a local legend, to the very foundation of Milan. Several ancient sources (including

Sidonius Apollinaris Gaius Sollius Modestus Apollinaris Sidonius, better known as Sidonius Apollinaris (5 November of an unknown year, 430 – 481/490 AD), was a poet, diplomat, and bishop. Sidonius is "the single most important surviving author from 5th-century Gaul ...

, Datius, and, more recently, Andrea Alciato)Claudio Beretta, ''Letteratura dialettale milanese'', Ulrico Hoepli, pp. 21-26; se

/ref> have argued that the scrofa semilanuta is connected to the etymology of the ancient name of Milan, "Mediolanum", and this is still occasionally mentioned in modern sources, although this interpretation has long been dismissed by scholars. The adoption of the half-woolly sow as an emblem of Milan is associated to a legend about the foundation of the city. According to this legend (which partially draws from

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...

's writings), the founder of Milan was a

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

prince named Belloveso. Belloveso reached the Po Valley following a vision he had had in a dream, where a goddess showed him the place where the city would rise. In this dream, he saw a sow with unusually long wool on the front half of its body. Other ancient sources (most notably the aforementioned Alciato, who in turns credits Ambrose for his account) report that the half-woolly sow is actually a sort of "

chimera Chimera, Chimaera, or Chimaira (Greek for " she-goat") originally referred to: * Chimera (mythology), a fire-breathing monster of Ancient Lycia said to combine parts from multiple animals * Mount Chimaera, a fire-spewing region of Lycia or Cilici ...

" — half boar and half ram — and that the emblem came about when the Bituriges and the

Aedui The Aedui or Haedui (Gaulish: *''Aiduoi'', 'the Ardent'; grc, Aἴδουοι) were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the modern Burgundy region during the Iron Age and the Roman period. The Aedui had an ambiguous relationship with the Roman Republic a ...

, having as their emblems a ram and a boar respectively, joined in the Po Valley. The origin of the legend of scrofa semilanuta and the circumstances of its adoption as an emblem of Milan are a very controversial matter for scholars. A key element of this controversy is a bas relief affixed to the walls of the Palazzo della Ragione, former "

broletto In Middle Age Communes in Italy, a broletto was the place where the whole population met for democratic assemblies, and where the elected men lived and administered justice. ''Broletto'' is an ancient Italian word, from medieval Latin "broilum, bro ...

" (administrative building) of the medieval commune of Milan. The bas relief is reportedly a medieval copy of an older one, found during the excavations when the Palazzo was built (1228-1233). It has been argued that the legend of the scrofa semilanuta, in its current form, might have come about as a consequence of that particular finding as well as the patriotic enthusiasm for the newly conquered independence of Milan as a commune, elaborating on the old legends about the etymology of "Mediolanum".Scrofa semilanuta mediolanense
/ref> The bas relief itself might just represent a boar, which in turn was a very common emblem in

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

. In any case, the "scrofa semilanuta" was thereafter adopted as the main emblem of Milan, at least until the advent of the biscione of the

House of Visconti Visconti is a surname which may refer to: Italian noble families * Visconti of Milan, ruled Milan from 1277 to 1447 ** Visconti di Modrone, collateral branch of the Visconti of Milan * Visconti of Pisa and Sardinia, ruled Gallura in Sardinia from ...

. Another (more recent) representation of the "scrofa semilanuta" is found in the internal courtyard of Palazzo Marino (Milan's city hall).

Footnotes

History of Milan Culture in Milan