Coat of Arms

The coat of arms of the Prefecture are largely based on those of Pope Pius XII, during whose pontificate the Prefecture was erected. They feature a trimount argent – a mountain with three peaks in silver – on a green field, representing land, and the waves representing the ocean. Above the trimount is an eight-pointed star in gold, which represents the Virgin Mary, who is patroness of the Prefecture under her title ‘Star of the Sea’.

The Prefecture’s motto is insulis maris pax Christi which translates as “The peace of Christ to the islands of the sea”, which is derived from Isaiah 24:15, which reads: “Therefore in the east give glory to the Lord; in the coastlands of the sea, to the name of the Lord, the God of Israel.”