The armorial insignia of the City of Glasgow by tradition contains the following elements: "Here is the bird that never flew; here is the tree that never grew; here is the bell that never rang; here is the fish that never swam." These elements tell of the legends surrounding St Mungo (or Kentigern), the city's patron saint, and first appeared together in a civic seal used from 1488-1540.

Like so many cities, Glasgow is defined by the River Clyde which flows through it, connecting the city to the trading routes of the Atlantic and beyond, and nurturing a great but now much reduced shipbuilding industry.

The city and the river come together in the legend of the salmon with a ring in its mouth. The City's official record offers the following account: "The fish with a ring in its mouth is a salmon and the ring was a present from Hydderch Hael, King of Cadzow, to his Queen Languoreth.

"The Queen gave the ring to a knight and the King, suspecting an intrigue, took it from him while he slept during a hunting party and threw it into the River Clyde.

"On returning home, the King demanded the ring and threatened Languoreth with death if she could not produce it. The Queen appealed to the Knight who, of course, could not help and then confessed to St Mungo who sent one of his monks to fish in the river, instructing him to bring back the first fish caught. This was done and St Mungo extracted the ring from its mouth.

"The scene is represented on the counter seal of Bishop Wyschard, made about 1271."