June 10th is International Heraldry Day, World Crafts Day, World Pet Day, World Ice Cream Day and Ballpoint Pen Day. This day left a noticeable mark in the history of mankind, because in different centuries there were events that influenced the course of religious, political, scientific and cultural evolution.
International Day of Heraldry
Every year on June 10, researchers of symbolism, scientists, reenactors and amateurs celebrate the International Day of Heraldry – a date that unites not only lovers of the Middle Ages, but everyone who understands the power of the sign as a universal code. This holiday was founded in 2013, choosing a symbolic historical event as a link to the date: on June 10, 1128, the English king Henry I Beauclerc presented his future son-in-law Geoffrey Plantagenet with a shield decorated with three pairs of golden lions during the knighthood ceremony. According to many historians, this gift was one of the first documented coats of arms in European history.
Heraldry as a science is not only about shields, coats of arms and slogans. These are codes that encode dynasties, wars, alliances, social roles, ideas and ideals. In each coat of arms – the history of an individual or an entire family, in each symbol – echoes of politics, religion, family pride or attempts at self-assertion. Heraldry was the official language of prestige in the Middle Ages, enabling identification of enemy and ally on the battlefield, issuing documents, marking seals, and declaring claims to power.
Today, coats of arms continue to exist in museums, facades of town halls, in state coat of arms, in school and university logos, and on municipal signs. In many countries, in particular in Ukraine, active work is underway to update and organize local heraldry: emblems of communities are created, new symbols for territorial units are developed, and old ones are brought back from oblivion.
Interesting facts
Heraldic colors are divided into metals (gold — yellow, silver — white) and enamels (red, blue, black, green, purple). They cannot be mixed at will: for example, metal cannot be placed on metal, and enamel cannot be placed on enamel.
Coats of arms have a “language”: for example, a lion symbolizes courage and strength, an eagle – power, a lily – nobility, and a sword – military prowess. The combination of symbols creates a complex narrative — the so-called heraldic legend.
Heraldry became the basis for vexillology — the science of flags. In many cases, the coat of arms itself was the basis for creating the flag of a city, state or dynasty.
Women also had coats of arms, though often with a rounded or rhombic shield, without a helmet — to distinguish female heraldry from military heraldry.
The coat of arms of Ukraine — the trident — has deep historical roots: from the symbols of the Rurik dynasty to modern statehood. Its form is first found on coins of Vladimir the Great in the 10th century.
In the 20th century, heraldry did not disappear, but changed: totalitarian regimes, such as the USSR or the Third Reich, created their own heraldic systems that combined ancient symbols with propaganda elements. For example, hammer and sickle, red star — a new typology of ideological emblems that imitated the heraldic principles of recognition.
World Crafts Day
This date honors not only the craft as a skill, but above all the cultural heritage of humanity, which is carried on the shoulders of millions of craftsmen. This holiday was born as an international initiative in 1964, when the first large-scale conference was held in New York with the participation of government officials, teachers, artists and craftsmen from 40 countries. It was then that it was emphasized for the first time that traditional crafts are not archaic, but a living and original tool for the development of culture, economy and social inclusion.
Craftsmanship is the ability to create something with your hands, and the generation of experience that is passed down through technique, intuition, ritual, and detail. In it is time, concentration, slowed down understanding of matter. In the times of automation and mass production, manual work has acquired a new value: it has become a symbol of authenticity, sustainability, and human presence in the product.
At the 1964 conference, an opinion was voiced that is still relevant today: crafts have the right not only to preservation, but also to development, training and support. This is not nostalgia for the past, but a response to the challenges of globalization. Craftsmen can and should be integrated into the modern economy, tourism industries, design, fashion and education. Since then, June 10 became an opportunity to talk not only about potters, weavers or jewelers, but also about the political significance of preserving intangible cultural heritage.
In Ukraine, this holiday acquires a special sound. After all, folk crafts – carving, weaving, embroidery, blacksmithing – decorate everyday life, and also shape the idea of Ukrainian identity.
Interesting facts
The 1964 international conference was organized by the World Crafts Council, which later became a global platform for supporting crafts and networking among craftsmen in more than 100 countries.
The craft is officially recognized as part of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity — UNESCO lists not only songs or rituals, but also specific craft techniques, for example, the traditional pottery of Kosova (Ukraine), the Japanese art of lacquering, or French lace-making.
In many countries, crafts are part of the vocational education system. For example, in Germany and Austria there is a system of dual education, where students from youth combine theoretical learning with craft practice in production.
In 2022, the craft sector accounted for more than 3% of global GDP as part of the creative economy, according to the United Nations. The demand for unique, local, handmade products is growing, especially among young people who are looking for an alternative to the mass market.
Today’s craft is an innovation – young masters combine traditional techniques with 3D printing, biomaterials, modern fonts, eco-design. For example, embroidery can be not only on a shirt, but on an architectural facade.
Demand for craft training is growing in Ukraine: workshops, festivals, and craft schools are opening. The public’s interest in pottery, wickerwork, leatherwork, or professional embroidery speaks to a deep need for tactile, hands-on experience—as a counterweight to digital overload.
Many Ukrainian craftsmen in wartime continue to work, creating things for the army, volunteers or as a symbol of support: woven bracelets, charms, name-embroidered items, wooden souvenirs with symbols. Craft became a way of therapy, resistance, connection with home.
World Pet Remembrance Day
The second Tuesday of June is a special date in many countries of the world. This day marks World Pet Remembrance Day, an unofficial but deeply personal holiday that originated as an initiative to support people who have experienced the loss of a pet. The idea of this day is not to mourn, but to calmly, gratefully remember those who were near, gave warmth, affection and daily joy – even when others could not.
This day arose as an expression of empathy for a special kind of loss. It gives an opportunity not only to remember, but also to find ways to preserve memory: someone creates a photo book, someone plants a tree, someone lights a candle or writes a letter. In some countries, thematic events are held on this day: pet therapy sessions, animal portrait exhibitions, support groups or even charity events for the benefit of shelters – as a way to turn sadness into action. For many, this day is also important from a psychological point of view — an opportunity to live through the loss. After all, society does not always recognize grieving for an animal as a “real” loss.
Interesting facts
The initiator of the day is considered to be the British organization Pets Magazine, which in 2015 called for the first time to make June Day a moment of remembrance. The idea was supported by numerous charitable foundations, clinics, shelters and individual owners around the world.
Some countries have specialized pet cemeteries, the most famous of which is the Cimetière des Chiens in Paris, founded in 1899. It is not only a resting place, but also a cultural object.
In Japan, there is a Buddhist tradition of burying animals with a full ritual, including prayers and inscriptions on tablets. Animals are perceived as beings that have a soul and a life path.
Memorial services for pets are increasingly appearing in Ukraine — from cremation and memorial plaques to special urns and ecocapsules with tree seeds.
Pet loss has official psychological status: the American Psychological Association recognizes grief after the death of a pet as an important stage that requires support. Many clinics in the US have dedicated specialists or hotlines to help owners.
World Ice Cream Day
Every year on June 10, sweet tooths around the world celebrate World Ice Cream Day — an informal but surprisingly popular celebration of one of mankind’s most beloved desserts. It is not just an occasion to eat a cone or a glass of chilled happiness – it is a day when ice cream becomes a cultural and gastronomic symbol of summer, joy and traditions that have existed for centuries.
It is known that frozen desserts were prepared in Ancient China, Persia, Rome and India. In Europe, recipes began to spread in the Middle Ages, and the modern cream version appeared thanks to the development of freezing technologies in the 16th and 17th centuries. However, it was the United States of America that became the platform where ice cream turned from a privilege of aristocrats into a product of mass consumption.
The first documented mention of ice cream in the New World dates back to 1744. This fact is known from a letter written by William Blood, a guest of the governor of Maryland, in which he describes a table on which “frozen cream treats” were served. But the real breakthrough was an advertisement in the newspaper “New York Gazette” dated May 12, 1777, in which confectioner Philip Lenz said that ice cream was available “almost every day”. This was not only the beginning of the commercialization of the dessert, but also a milestone in the history of gastronomy – even before the first mass sales took place.
And although the best-known date of the start of regular ice cream trade in the United States is June 10, 1786, it is this date that has become the symbolic birthday of ice cream in the New World. Since then, the dessert has gone through many transformations — from simple frozen milk to layered gelato, sorbets, lactose-free options, and exotic flavors with wasabi, bacon, or even cuttlefish ink.
Interesting facts
The first mentions of the similarity to ice cream appeared in China around 2000. BC, where desserts were made from ice, snow, rice and fruit.
American presidents also loved ice cream. Thomas Jefferson had his own handwritten recipe for vanilla ice cream, and George Washington spent over $200 on ice cream in the summer of 1790 alone—an enormous sum for the time.
Ice cream became a real symbol of “affordable luxury” in the 20th century – after the invention of freezers and the advent of industrial production, it became available to all segments of the population.
During the Second World War, ice cream became an element of the patriotic spirit of the United States: the army made ice cream for the military, and special refrigeration units were built on aircraft carriers.
The most used flavor remains vanilla, although different countries have their own hits: in Japan, ice cream with green buckwheat or octopus is popular, in Turkey – gooey dondurma, and in Italy – dense, aromatic gelato.
There is even “ice cream diplomacy” in the world: there are recorded cases in history when ice cream was given to state leaders as a symbol of hospitality and cultural exchange.
Ukraine has its own history of ice cream, where classic Soviet-style fillings are still associated with childhood for many, and modern manufacturers are actively experimenting with organic and original flavors.
The most ice cream in the world is consumed in New Zealand, the USA and Australia, where the average annual volume exceeds 20 liters per person.
Day of the ballpoint pen
Every year on June 10, Ballpoint Pen Day is celebrated to commemorate the date when this invention was officially patented in the United States in 1943. At first glance, it is an everyday thing that lies in every drawer or pocket. But at its core, the ballpoint pen is a revolution in writing, industry, education, and even consumer culture.
US patent #2,390,636 was awarded to Hungarian journalist and inventor László Biro, who emigrated to Argentina to escape the Nazis. It was Biro who, together with his chemist brother, developed a mechanism that allowed the ink to flow freely through a small ball at the tip of the pen without spreading or drying. This mechanism was radically different from pens, which required constant immersion in ink or filling of the reservoir, and was more convenient than pencils.
Military, aviators, schoolchildren, journalists – all quickly appreciated the new technology of writing. Thanks to the ballpoint pen, writing became mobile, clean, and fast. It did not require complex maintenance, did not dirty the paper, could write at different angles and even in weightlessness (in modernized versions). Therefore, the ballpoint pen became a universal tool in any spheres.
Today it is difficult to imagine the modern world without a ballpoint pen. It remains a symbol of writing even in the digital age. Despite smartphones, tablets and styluses, it is with a pen that we sign contracts, leave an autograph, make notes, prepare letters or simply draw in a notebook. Her physical presence still gives the writing a sense of authenticity and personal touch.
Interesting facts
Laszlo Biro’s name has entered everyday language: in Argentina, Great Britain and Australia, the ballpoint pen is sometimes called simply “biro” – after the surname of its inventor.
The first large-scale customer of ballpoint pens was the British army. In 1944, the Ministry of Defense of Great Britain bought a large batch of pens for the pilots of the Royal Air Force, because it was almost impossible to write with a pen in the air.
The pen changed the architecture of writing: due to the thinness and stability of the line, new fonts, styles of signatures, types of writing appeared. Copywriters, stenographers and teachers have switched en masse to pens as their main tool.
In the 1950s, the French company BIC bought the patent from Biro and started mass production. Their BIC Cristal model became a world standard and is still sold today – more than 100 billion units have been produced as of the 21st century.
In the 2000s, NASA commissioned special Fisher Space Pens that could write in zero gravity, on greasy paper, and at low temperatures. Contrary to popular myth, Soviet cosmonauts also used such pens.
The ballpoint pen entered the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York – the BIC Cristal model was recognized as an example of ideal industrial design: simple, functional, massive.
In Ukraine, the ballpoint pen became a symbol of mass education in the 1960s: it was actively introduced in schools instead of inkwells and quills, which made it possible to standardize education and make writing more accessible.
Historical events on this day
404 — Ivan Chrysostom, an outstanding Christian thinker, preacher and archbishop of Constantinople, was expelled from the city. This was the result of conflicts with Empress Eudoxia and political opposition in the church environment. His exile caused indignation among believers and marked the beginning of the tradition of commemorating martyrdom for the word.
978 — Prince Volodymyr the Great, son of Svyatoslav Ihorovych, established himself on the Kyiv throne. It was his reign that became key to the Christianization of Russia, the unification of lands, and the strengthening of statehood. This political step ensured stability and formed the further development vector of Eastern Europe.
1610 — the first Dutch colonists arrived on Manhattan Island in North America. This event marked the beginning of the formation of the New Amsterdam settlement, which later became one of the most famous cities in the world – New York.
1692 — the first women accused of witchcraft were executed in the city of Salem (Massachusetts). Thus began one of the loudest and most tragic episodes of American colonial history – the “Salem witch trials”, which became a symbol of fanaticism and mass hysteria.
1793 — in Paris, the first zoo in the world – Jardin des Plantes – was opened to the public. This was an important step in the development of zoology, natural science and enlightenment, because for the first time animals were exhibited not for entertainment, but for scientific purposes.
1793 — on the same day, Washington officially became the capital of the USA, replacing Philadelphia. This decision strengthened the federal status of the new political center and started the development of the city, which became the heart of American power.
1809 — Pope Pius VII excommunicated Napoleon Bonaparte for his aggressive policy towards the Papal States. This became another stage of the conflict between the church and the French imperial authorities.
1907 — the Lumiere brothers, pioneers of cinematography, developed a method of printing color photographs — autochromic technology. Its introduction was a step towards the creation of color cinema and the development of visual arts in the 20th century.
1909 — passenger liner “Slavonia” became the first ship in the world to send an SOS radio signal during an accident. This innovation saved dozens of lives and became a turning point in the implementation of the marine emergency communication system.
1909 — also on this day, the city of Canberra, the future capital of Australia, was officially founded. Its creation as a purpose-built government center was a compromise between Sydney and Melbourne.
1934 — in the structure of the NKVD of the Ukrainian SSR, the Main Department of Correctional Labor Camps was created, a branch of the Soviet Gulag in Ukraine. This was the beginning of a large-scale system of repression, labor exploitation and violation of human rights within the framework of totalitarian policy.
1940 — during the Second World War, Italy declared war on Great Britain and France. In response, Canada entered the war against Italy on the same day, which was another confirmation of the global nature of the armed conflict.
1943 — the Hungarian László Biro received a patent for the invention of the ballpoint pen in the USA. Thanks to this decision, a new era in everyday writing began, which made the pen affordable, convenient and versatile.
1964 — a monument to Taras Shevchenko was unveiled in Moscow, opposite the building of the Moscow State University. This act recognized the role of the Ukrainian poet as a symbol of freedom of speech, culture and dignity even within the Soviet context.
1997 — the American company Intel introduced the Pentium II processor, which started a new era in the development of personal computers. It ensured higher productivity, multimedia and widespread introduction of technologies into everyday life.
2003 — NASA successfully launched the Spirit rover as part of the Mars Exploration Rover mission. This device explored the surface of Mars for more than 6 years instead of the planned 90 days and transmitted thousands of unique images and data that changed the perception of the Red Planet.
