Standesscheibe

A Standesscheibe is a stained glass that presents a coat of arms of a canton of the Old Swiss Confederacy. It is sometimes arranged in a complete armorial of all cantonal coats of arms of Switzerland. A standessheibe is an example of a wappenscheibe, a coat of arms depicted in a stained glass window.

Standesscheibe of Zürich (1679)

The usage of Standessheibe became fashionable in 1485 along with the Swiss illustrated chronicles. This was as a result of increased national pride due to recent victories in the Burgundian Wars.

In 1501, a full set of cantonal Standesscheiben, made by Lukas Zeiner of Zürich, was presented to the hall of the Swiss diet in Baden.

Standesscheiben usage remained active in Switzerland throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, and to some extent continued in the 19th and early 20th centuries with the coats of arms of the cantons of modern Switzerland.

See also

• Cantonal coats of arms (Switzerland)

References

• Hermann Meyer, Die schweizerische Sitte der Fenster- und Wappenschenkung vom XV. bis XVII. Jh. (1884).
• Jenny Schneider, Die Standesscheiben von Lukas Zeiner im Tagsatzungssaal zu Baden (Schweiz): ein Beitrag zur Geschichte der schweizerischen Standesscheiben, vol. 12 of Basler Studien zur Kunstgeschichte (1954).