Coat of Arms Plate

Coat of arms plates made of ceramic with Swiss coats of arms and/or cantonal coats of arms, such as the Zurich coat of arms, the Bernese coat of arms, the Lucerne coat of arms or the Graubünden coat of arms, are now often a collector’s item. There are also coats of arms plates with the coat of arms of a city, for example the city of Neuchâtel (Neuenburg), a family or an institution. Coat of arms plates are not always made of ceramic. Below you can find out what the coat of arms plates are all about, the history of the coat of arms plates and where you can buy them.
 
 

What are coats of arms plates?

Coat of arms plates are plates on which heraldic elements are depicted, i.e. coats of arms. Heraldry is the study of coats of arms, which deals with the use of coats of arms, among other things. The coats of arms can be family coats of arms, but also the coats of arms of villages, towns, cantons or countries. There are also coats of arms plates that depict the coat of arms of a specific institution, such as an association or a student fraternity.

The coats of arms plates themselves can be made of different materials, such as pewter, wood, porcelain or ceramic.

Plates with coats of arms can be used as decorative objects , for example on the wall as wall plates or for use as dinner plates. However, the latter is not advisable if the plate has a uranium glaze. Coat of arms plates are also collected and are then primarily used as collector’s items – also known as collection plates.

History of the coat of arms plate

The first armorial plates appeared in Switzerland in the 17th century, in the form of relief plates made of pewter. Entire services were made from porcelain, known as heraldic porcelain, for kings or wealthy families, for example. Some of these armorial porcelains were made in China, but according to the specifications – drawings or samples – of the European patrons. This is also referred to as Chinese commissioned porcelain.

In the late Romantic period (around 1820 to 1850), heraldic art became fashionable. The production of heraldic plates with symbols of the Swiss Confederation, such as the Swiss coat of arms and/or the cantonal coats of arms, received a boost on the occasion of the “600th anniversary of the Swiss Confederation” in 1891.[1] Such coat-of-arms plates made of ceramic were increasingly produced in Switzerland in the end of the 19th century in the Thun region, by workshops that also produced the so-called ‘Thun majolica’.

Sources

[1] Buchs, Hermann: Vom Heimberger Geschirr zur Thuner Majolika, Thun 1988, p. 73.

Buy a coat of arms plate

Below you will find coats of arms plates for sale, provided they are still available. Pieces that have already been sold are marked ‘Sold’. Many of these plates are made of ceramic and were produced in Switzerland. They bear, for example, the Swiss coat of arms and/or other coats of arms, such as cantonal coats of arms and/or city coats of arms.