Animal motifs often feature in coats of arms. In our exhibition we have four examples of this, on three stabelle chairs and a chest. The animals here generally symbolize virtues such as courage or strength. The first coats of arms were created during the Crusades, and were borne on the knights’ shields. Some of the coats of arms of families from the Grisons were issued in connection with their elevation to the aristocracy by European royal houses. Heraldry — the study of coats of arms — is a complex field whose further presentation would go beyond the bounds of the present exhibition.

In addition to these furniture pieces, our exhibition presents a number of further animal-related items, from the head of a deer to a trap for a bear. In fact, the animal theme is found in some form or another in almost every room of our museum. So do explore the rest of the house, too, and discover the snake-motif stabelle chairs or the richly-decorated snake-shaped shepherd’s crook.