Arsène Heitz (27 March 1908 – 1989) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

- French draughtsman, born in

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

, who worked at the

Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; , CdE) is an international organisation with the goal of upholding human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it is Europe's oldest intergovernmental organisation, represe ...

. He is the co-author of the

Flag of Europe The flag of Europe or European flag consists of twelve Or (heraldry), golden stars forming a Circle of stars, circle on a Azure (heraldry), blue field. It was designed and adopted in 1955 by the Council of Europe (CoE) as a symbol for the who ...

(in collaboration with Paul M. G. Lévy). Heitz worked in the postal service of the Council of Europe while the flag was being chosen between 1950 and 1955, and he submitted 21 of the 101 designs that are conserved in the Council of Europe Archives. He proposed among other drawings a circle of twelve yellow stars upon a blue background; inspired by the twelve-star halo of the

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, the

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of the

Book of Revelation The Book of Revelation, also known as the Book of the Apocalypse or the Apocalypse of John, is the final book of the New Testament, and therefore the final book of the Bible#Christian Bible, Christian Bible. Written in Greek language, Greek, ...

, often portrayed in

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art, which can be seen in the Rose Window that the Council of Europe donated to

Strasbourg Cathedral Strasbourg Cathedral or the Cathedral of Our Lady of Strasbourg (, or ''Cathédrale de Strasbourg'', ), also known as Strasbourg Minster (church), Minster (), is a Catholic cathedral in Strasbourg, Alsace, France. Although considerable parts of ...

in 1953. Indeed, he proposed a design with “a crown of 12 golden stars with 5 rays, their points not touching.” His flag with twelve stars was eventually adopted by the Council, and the design was finalised by Paul M. G. Lévy. Arsène Heitz, who mainly designed the European flag in 1955, had told Lourdes magazine that his inspiration had been the reference in the Book of Revelation, the

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

's final section, to "a woman clothed with the sun...and a crown of twelve stars on her head" (Revelation 12:1). He was a devout Catholic who belonged to the Order of the

Miraculous Medal The Miraculous Medal (), also known as the Medal of Our Lady of Graces or the Medal of the Immaculate Conception, is a devotional medal, the design of which was originated by Catherine Labouré following her Marian apparition, apparitions of the ...

, which may have influenced his views on the symbolism of the 12 stars.

References

History of the European Union Artists from Strasbourg French draughtsmen Council of Europe people Belgian Roman Catholics 1908 births 1989 deaths Flag designers {{France-artist-stub