Most of us have heard about the Game of Thrones TV show, so you probably have at least a vague idea of the family Houses of Westeros. Each house has its own way of doing things, their own motto, and, perhaps most importantly of all, their own fun animal mascot.
Each house has a “sigil” to represent them on flags and shields and banners. The Targaryens are more than just a little attached to their Dragons. The Starks can literally become their Direwolves. The Lannisters aren’t lacking in Lion pride. These symbols are more than just fashion statements, they help unite the family to a common identity.
This got me thinking, what would our Family Mascot be? To carefully follow the German tradition of Coat of Arms, the animal would be from this list in order of usage popularity: Eagle, Lion, Bear, Stag, Horse, and Wolf. Besides having a graphic symbol, a Muller Family Sigil with this animal could be displayed on different items such as a shirt, hat, coffee mug, mailbox, letter sealer or bumper-sticker.
I decided that the Bear best represents the region of Germany that my family came from (Saxony). After working on multiple designs, this is the final piece that includes the family motto: Virtute, Ingenioque, Valemus translated to English which means “Strength by Ingenuity and Virtue”.