The civic coat of arms, likely featuring a golden eagle on a red background, could refer to the House of Aragon, as these two colours are part of the royal coat of arms of the house under Alfonso II (1162/1196). The eagle, on the other hand, is reminiscent of the Hohenstaufen eagle, which was used by Constance and Peter III of Aragon in some of their coinage, together with crossed sticks, to represent the marital union of the two families. In any case, the gold eagle on a red background is also the political symbol with which the Romans used to give a sense of nobility to Palermo. These colours were symbols of royalty in ancient Rome and may refer to the dignity of the city in the Republican era.
