Altena
Altena (; Westphalian: Altenoa) is a town in the district of Märkischer Kreis, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town's castle is the origin for the later Dukes of Berg. Altena is situated on the Lenne river valley, in the northern stretches of the Sauerland.
This article is about the German town. For the Dutch municipality, see Altena, North Brabant. For the Dutch village, see Altena, Drenthe. For other uses, see Altena (disambiguation).
Altena
7
44.29 km2 (17.10 sq mi)
511 m (1,677 ft)
145 m (476 ft)
16,430
370/km2 (960/sq mi)
02352
MK
Coat of arms[edit]
The coat of arms shows Catherine of Alexandria, the patron saint of the church built in 1310. She is depicted with a sword and a wheel, as she was killed in 307 by these two items. The choice of patron saint goes back to a vow made by Count Engelbert III of the Mark made at the burial place of Catherine in Jerusalem. The red and white checked fess refers to the coat of arms of the Counts of the Mark.
The coat of arms is quite old: a seal from the 15th century already depicts the same elements. In its current design it was created by Otto Hupp in 1938.
