What’s behind this logos’ design? Every logo represents a company, it should be a symbol which stands for the company’s philosophy. It’s not always easy to understand the correlation between illustrations, design and the story of their birth. Just think that the Ferrari logo came out of the fusion between the city of Modena, the First World War, counts and airplanes.
Ferrari logo: courage, speed and Italy
If you have ever driven a Ferrari, you probably know that unique feeling inside your brain, your heart, your muscles – the excitement. You control the gas pedal and it’s a mix of power, self-confidence, fear and adrenaline. Nowadays the cars produced by Ferrari are world-renowned, a status symbol. Probably there’s no more illustrious brand in the history of automobiles. That little prancing horse has its part to play in the history of this Italian proud machine.
Everything starts with the Count Francesco Baracca, a legendary professional ace (asso) of the Italian air force of World War I. On the fuselage of its plane there was a horse painted in black. Enzo Ferrari (aka Papà Enzo for Ferrari family) probably fell in love with the image and the story of this national hero, who died very young after 34 victorious duels.
In 1923, I met count Enrico Baracca, the hero’s father, and then his mother, countess Paulina, who said to me one day, ‘Ferrari, put my son’s prancing horse on your cars. It will bring you good luck’. The horse was, and still is, black, and I added the canary yellow background which is the colour of Modena.
Baracca’s family arms
Baracca’s squad – “Battaglione Aviatori” – was enrolled in a horse regiment and he soon became the best cavaliere of the team. This was probably the reason for that symbol on his airplane.
It is not clear, but some people say that the original “prancing horse” on Baracca’s airplane was painted red on the white background and that Ferrari decided to have the animal in black. Black color would represent the grief of the Ferrari family for the airman who was killed in fighting.
As you can see in this image, the horse is crowned with three colored stripes that symbolize Italian national flag. And some cars (just as this old one) present an inscription S F that means “Scuderie Ferrari“. It’s the official name of the racing division of the manufacturer and Scuderia in Italian stands for a stable reserved for racing horses.
Other resources
Video – “The genesis of the Ferrari brand” – a story of the Ferrari logo from the official Ferrari channel on youtube