Cossack Mamay

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For other uses of Mamay, see Mamay (disambiguation).

Cossack Mamay in a traditional artistic representation

Cossack Mamay (Ukrainian: Козак Мамай) is a Ukrainian folklore hero. Mamay embodies the appreciation of Ukrainian people to their defenders - Zaporizhian Cossacks. Tales about Cossack Mamay can be encountered in legends, folk stories and proverbs. These tales became more popular after the destruction of the Zaporizhian Sich in 1775. Art is perhaps best suited for someone interested in finding Mamay. In paintings, Cossack Mamay would often be shown with a bandura - a symbol of a musical soul of the people; a horse, which represented freedom, and an oak with his weapons hanging on it symbolizing the people's strength.

Cossack Mamay on a 1997 Ukrainian coin

[edit] 1997 Coin with Mamay

On this 1997 coin minted by National Bank of Ukraine, Cossack Mamay is dressed in a rich coat with fur and sits in a Turkish way, smoking a pipe and playing a bandura. Traditional depictions of Cossack military life circle Mamay: a horse with a good outfit, tied to a spear with a small flag on its top, plunged into soil; green oak-tree with a hanging sabre; a pistol and a stone powder case; high Turkish hat and a bottle of "okovyta" (Ukrainian vodka).

The coin's external circumference has inscriptions: (Ukrainian: Козак Мамай, Cossack Mamay) - at the left and (Ukrainian: Лицар волі і честі, Knight of Freedom and Honor) - at the right. Above, these inscriptions are separated with a small flag at the spear top, underneath - with a conventionalized guelder-rose spray.

The Mamay coin is a part of "Heroes of Cossack Age," Ukraine's commemorative and jubilee coins.