- The Governor General of Canada
The contents of this Register are intended for research purposes only. The heraldic emblems found in the Register may not be reproduced in any form or in any media without the written consent of the Canadian Heraldic Authority and/or the recipient.
Eva Maria Anna Schmitz
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
Grant of Arms, with differences to Rahel Waira Schmitz, Michèle Andrea Schmitz, Stefan Nicolas Schmitz and Andreas Valentin Schmitz
January 15, 2003
Vol. IV, p. 269
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Blazon
Arms
Per fess Gules and chequy Argent and Sable, in chief a chess-rook Argent, all within a bordure per fess Argent and Gules;
Crest
A chess-rook Gules;
Symbolism
Arms
The central design was made for Mrs. Schmitz's father, Werner Otto Ciocarelli, by Fritz Brunner of the Guild of the Zürich Heralds. The chess motif makes a canting reference to the name Ciocarelli, derived from the Italian word giocare, which means "to play." This older form of the chess rook is an established heraldic symbol. The addition of the border is a mark of cadency (Mrs. Schmitz is Mr. Ciocarelli's second child), and the red and white are prominent colours of the shield, as well as being the colours of Canada, Switzerland, and the canton of Jura, where Mrs. Schmitz the petitioner had a farm before moving to Canada.
Crest
The crest repeats the symbol from the arms.