[500] Hong Kong - 1959-1997 Coat of Arms Watch

Introducing ‘Cities of the World’ series, part of the ‘World Heraldry’ collection by Serge Averbukh, showcasing stunning new media paintings of various municipal coats of arms and emblems. Here you will find pieces featuring Hong Kong Coat of Arms (1959-1997). Hong Kong (香港; "Fragrant Harbour"), officially known as Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, is a region on the southern coast of China geographically enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea. Hong Kong is known for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour, and with a land mass of 1,104 km2 (426 sq mi) and a population of over seven million people, is one of the most densely populated areas in the world. Hong Kong's population is 93.6% ethnic Chinese and 6.4% from other groups. Hong Kong's Cantonese-speaking majority originate mainly from the neighbouring Guangdong province,[10] from which many of them fled to escape wars and communist rule in mainland China from the 1930s to 1960s. Hong Kong was established as a colony of the British Empire after the First Opium War (1839–42). Hong Kong Island was first ceded in perpetuity to Great Britain, followed by Kowloon Peninsula in 1860 and then the New Territories were put under lease in 1898. It was occupied by Japan during The Second World War (1941–45), after which the British resumed control until 1997. The amalgam of British and Chinese culture during the colonial era shaped the current culture of Hong Kong. For example, the educational system followed the British model until 2009. As a result of the negotiations and the 1984 agreement between China and Britain, Hong Kong was handed over to the People's Republic of China and became its first Special Administrative Region on 1 July 1997, under the principle of "one country, two systems" (the other special region, Macau, attained that status when Portugal handed it over in December 1999). Hong Kong has a different political system from mainland China. The arms had been in use in colonial Hong Kong since it was granted on 21 January 1959 and later adopted on the colonial flag in July of that year. The use of the arms (by the Hong Kong Government) ended in 1997 where it was replaced by the regional emblem.