Deputies of the Irkutsk Region Legislative Assembly proposed banning unauthorized commercial use of the Priangarye coat of arms and the babr image on the Irkutsk coat of arms. Fines are planned for violations, and the bill is being prepared for final review at the next parliament session. The article also explains who the babr is and why disputes over this symbol still continue, from a legend about an extinct big cat to the version that it actually meant a tiger.

Deputies of the Legislative Assembly of the Irkutsk Region have proposed banning the unauthorized use of the coat of arms of the Angara region for commercial purposes. Offenders will be fined.
The elected representatives are proposing to ban the commercial use of the image of the babr, the mysterious beast depicted on the coat of arms of Irkutsk. The deputies believe it is necessary to prohibit the exploitation of this image in advertising for goods, works, and services that, under the law, may not be promoted on the market.
In addition, the draft regional law "On the Coat of Arms and Flag" includes a ban on "the use of an unofficial image of the coat of arms if this does not contribute to fostering respect for historical memory, traditions, the national and cultural identity of the peoples living in the region, as well as strengthening interethnic harmony." It is expected that this bill will be adopted in its final reading at the parliament's upcoming session.
Who the babr depicted on the coat of arms of the Angara region is can be difficult to determine at first glance. For a long time, there was a myth that the babr was some kind of unusual large cat that lived in the territory of the Irkutsk Governorate, but by the time the coat of arms of Irkutsk was approved, it had been practically exterminated, and its only image remained in the heraldic symbol. "These beasts were honored with depiction on the seal because the babr is the rarest of all the beasts of Siberia...", says the "Description of the Irkutsk Governorate." Obviously, such descriptions gave rise to the legend of the extinct black cat. In people's minds, the snow leopard (as on the coat of arms of the Yakut Customs) and the tiger may have been conflated. However, today scholars are more inclined to think that the babr should still be understood as a tiger. Indeed, tigers in the 18th century sometimes reached Transbaikalia, and there were cases when they were killed even west of Lake Baikal. However, "babar" in Persian means any large wild animal of the cat family hunted for its fur.