Physical Description

An eight-sided star, constructed of silver gilt and enamel. The arms are smooth and feature a feather on each side, facing away from the arm. The centre medallion is enamelled in blue with a painted white phoenix looking to the viewer’s right, emerging from a flaming pyre. The medallion ring is enamelled in white with the golden inscription ‘EX FLAMMIS CLARIOR’ (‘from the flame, brighter’) and two golden branches of laurel at the bottom, held together by a ribbon. The ring features an inner and outer border. The reverse is silver and smooth with a pinback.

History

The order's antecedent, the House Order of the Golden Flame, was founded by Prince Philipp Ernst I. It was originally conferred upon the male and female descendants of the prince in an effort to foster bonds of kinship and friendship.

The order was redesigned by the founder's son, Prince Karl Albrecht I, in 1770 to include the grades of Commander, Commander Breast Star, and Knight. The prince renamed the order the House Order of the Phoenix and expanded the order recipients to include foreign and German aristocrats. Recipients from German nobility had to trace their lineage back a minimum of four generations.

The obverse inscription translates to “In Old Age”, referring to the founder’s advanced age at the time of the House Order’s institution.

The reverse of the cross features the monogram of the founder.