The graphic representation of animals to associate certain values with things as distinct as brands, families or cities is a recurrent practice. Already in the Middle Ages, the coats of arms of some European royal families resorted to representations of lions, bears, among others.
Two good examples of animal representations in the logo are Ferrari and Porsche. Different brands (one is German, the other is Italian) and even rivals, but which nevertheless used the same representation: a rampant horse.
Why?
We could justify the use of the horse as a symbol of the two brands because it is easy to associate with values such as power, strength, freedom, beauty, nobility, among others. Values that we could easily associate with brands like Ferrari and Porsche. But it remains strange that two rival brands have the same symbol. It would be the same as seeing Benfica, Sporting and Belenenses using the crow – the symbol of Lisbon – to identify themselves.The main reason for the two brands to use the rampante horse - or cavallino, in good Italian -, oddly enough, it's just a big coincidence! However, the horse symbolism is used in the two brands for completely different reasons.
the rampant horse
We have to delve into the history of the two brands to understand why this huge coincidence. Here at Razão Automóvel, we had already looked into the origins of the rampant horse in Ferrari.
We have to go back in time, long before the founding of Ferrari, to World War I to discover the origin of the symbol.
Ferrari's rampant horse had its origins in the representation that an Italian Air Force pilot made on his plane. This symbol was recovered by Enzo Ferrari, at the request of the driver's mother, with the argument that it would bring luck to the brand — it seems that it worked. The symbol began to be used in 1932, when only Scuderia Ferrari, the official Alfa Romeo team, existed.
the stuttgart horse
You can also find the origin of the Porsche logo on Razão Automóvel. Unlike Ferrari, the origin of the rampant horse in Porsche is not due to luck, or the influence of airplane pilots. The rampant horse is the symbol of the city of Stuttgart, the German city where Porsche is based.
In the case of the German brand, the symbol would be defined and known only in 1952 — the Porsche 356 was the first model to bear it.
We have to go back to the origins of the city of Stuttgart to understand why they used the rampant horse as a symbol, which was later adopted by Porsche as well. This city was founded in the 10th century by Duke Liudolfo of Swabia. A site originally used for breeding horses, used by its cavalry during the Hungarian invasions. The presence of Duke Liudolfo of Swabia's stables in Stuttgart was so striking that this horse ended up serving as an inspiration for the symbol of the city.
Despite their diverse origins, it is still a fantastic coincidence that Ferrari and Porsche, two of the most important sports car brands, ended up with a rampant horse as the central element of their logos.
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