Top 10 symbols facts

Pillars of Hercules. The pillars of Hercules are rocks which are at the west flank of Mediterranean Sea: Rock of Gibraltar at the European side and Mount Moses ("Jebel Musa") at the African side. Colours of the flag are not officially explained. Colloquially, it is claimed that their meaning is: red - blood of a toreador, and yellow - the sand of the arena.

Inti, the Inca God. The Mayan Sun that can be seen on the flag of Argentina and Uruguay is, in fact, the image of Inti - the Inca God. It is also the symbol of the May Revolution which led to Argentina becoming a sovereign country.

Declaration of belief. The shahada is the Muslim declaration of belief in the oneness of God and acceptance of Muhammad as God’s prophet. The declaration in its shortest form reads: There is no god but God, Muhammad is the messenger of God.

7. The symbolic menorah has 7 lamps, but the commonly used Hanukkah menorah (pictured) has nine lamps, and no seven-lamps menorahs are made. This is because the menorah is described in the Bible as the seven-lamp lampstand made of gold, used in the portable sanctuary set up by Moses in the wilderness and later in the Temple in Jerusalem. The Talmud states that it is prohibited to use a seven-lamp menorah outside of the Temple.

Russia, England, Portugal and several others. The dragon-slayer saint was very popular as a patron saint during the Middle Ages. Many Patronages of Saint George exist around the world, including: Malta, Georgia, England, Egypt, Bulgaria, Aragon, Catalonia, Romania, Ethiopia, Greece, India, Iraq, Lebanon, Lithuania, Palestine, Portugal, Sardinia, Serbia, Macedonia, Ukraine, Russia and Syria, as well as numerous cities, professions and organizations.

It was taken over from the Byzantine Empire. After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, Moscow claimed succession to the legacy of the Eastern Roman Empire. Ivan III married Sophia Palaiologina, the niece of the last Byzantine emperor Constantine XI, and made the Byzantine double-headed eagle his own, and eventually Russian, coat-of-arms. In Byzantine heraldry, the heads represent the Emperor having authority over both secular and religious matters.

Birthplace of Jesus Christ. The Grotto of the Nativity, an underground cave located beneath the Church of Nativity, enshrines the site where Jesus is said to have been born. The exact spot is marked beneath an altar by a 14-pointed silver star set into the marble floor and surrounded by silver lamps.

The country of dragon. The dragon (druk) is the symbol of Bhutan. "The kingdom of dragon" is the title of the country anthem, and the king of Bhutan is officially called "The Dragon King".

In Greece. Arcadia is a historical land situated in the middle part of the Peloponnese in Greece. It's mountainous, covered in forest and hardscrabble, from ancient times it was poor and sparsely populated. In art it became a symbol of happiness, simple life and escape from civilization's concerns.

Taoism. The principle of yin and yang is represented in Taoism by the Taijitu (literally "Diagram of the Supreme Ultimate").