Cleveland Museum of Art

Heraldic Roundel with Arms of the Canton of Zürich

Hans Rütter

Date

1593

Medium

white glass with silver stain and pot metal

Culture

Switzerland, Zurich, late 16th Century

Department

Decorative Art and Design

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

The large shield at center incorporating the double eagle (insignia of the Holy Roman Empire) is surrounded by thirty small shields-those of the wards of the city of Zurich. In the late 1400s, it was customary for neighboring Swiss towns and cantons to exchange panels of stained glass to promote closer political relationships. The coats-of-arms of 31 different Swiss towns and provinces are shown in the outer ring of this stained glass roundel. If you look closely, you can see flowers, lions, and a unicorn. What symbols would you choose for your own coat-of-arms?

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