Coats of arms and heraldry. Like much of the knightly innovation, the basic rules of heraldry were developed in France. That is why all emblems, signs and symbols were named in Old French and medieval Latin.
How, for example, were the sides of the shield designated? Dexter (from Latin dextra - "right") - the right side, which was facing the knight's right hand, and sinister (from Latin sinister - "left") - respectively to the left. The method of dividing the field of the shield into parts was called division, and the drawings on it were called ordinaries.
And, since initially the coat of arms was on the knight's shield, then the coat of arms itself was determined by its shape: the Italian shield was oval, the Norman - in the form of an "iron", the French - had the form of a rectangle with a rounding or a sharp ledge at the bottom, the Germanic - tarch (the shield is more later) had cutouts. Diamond-shaped shields were "women's shields" and were traditionally used for coats of arms for maidens and widows. Moreover, in the first case, the coat of arms of the father was transferred to this shield, and in the second - of the husband. Oval shields most often belonged to the Italian clergy.
The main provisions of heraldry about colors are as follows: yellow and white are used to designate "metals" - gold (op) and silver (argent). All other colors in heraldry are "enamels" or "enamels": scarlet (gulz or worm), black - black (mourning or saber), green (vert), blue (azure), purple (purple). Moreover, the latter on the coats of arms could well differ and very much, that is, it could be lilac, and dark blue, and purple.
Moreover, each color meant something. Scarlet - "the color of blood", of course, courage, willingness to shed it in battle for his feudal lord or "lady of the heart." Azure - served to demonstrate greatness and nobility (hence "blue blood"). Green - symbolized hope and, of course, abundance so longed for in the Middle Ages. Purple - denoted dignity. Well, the rabble is, of course, sadness, humility before fate and education, which was rare at that time. Pure silver has always been a symbol of spiritual purity and physical innocence. And gold is wealth, justice and generosity (and besides, also the Kingdom of Heaven and the hope to get there).
Interestingly, in addition to colors or enamels, there are also so-called "heraldic furs" in heraldry. True, there are only two of them: ermine fur and squirrel. But they could be portrayed in different ways.
So, ermine fur on the coat of arms could have the appearance of black tails (like on a royal mantle) on a silver field (three dots next to it depicted suture material with which the tails were sewn onto the robe).
And a squirrel - silver and azure tongues (which were also called "caps") or have an incomprehensible shape of the handle of a crutch or a spade. In this case, it was called crutch-like. Moreover, all the squirrel furs on the coats of arms could be positioned both upward and downward. Fur in this case was called "anti-squirrel".
It was forbidden to overturn ermine fur by the rules. But on the other hand, its color could be changed: say, black to white. Such fur was called "anti-mountainous".
One of the most important heraldic rules was this: when making up the coat of arms, it was impossible to put metal on metal and enamel on enamel. Fur could be applied not only to enamel, but also to metal. It was also allowed to put enamel on the enamel, but only if it covered some details of the whole figure. For example, a golden lion, located in an azure field, could well have a scarlet tongue and claws, although in this case there will be an overlay of enamel on the enamel.
Well, the colors also had to be chosen wisely. A red lion on a white field looks good. But a blue lion on black would be almost invisible, as well as a black eagle on blue or dark purple.
However, in heraldry, as elsewhere, there were no rules without exceptions. Indeed, many coats of arms were not drawn up, but complained, and very often right on the battlefield or in such an environment when there was no time to consult with the herald. Also, changes could be made quickly to existing emblems. For example, the right edge of the coat of arms, which belongs to a knight who showed cowardice or cowardice, was broken off. Well, and a warrior who fell so low that he beat a prisoner could have shortened the shield from below.
Before marriage, the girl possessed the coat of arms of her father. A ribbon - "sweetheart's bow" was attached to her diamond-shaped shield. As soon as she got married, her diamond shield took on a "masculine" shape. Her husband's coat of arms was on the dexter of her shield. The old, "girlish" heraldic elements were preserved on the sinister of her new coat of arms.
It was accepted that the coat of arms of the father was partly included in the coat of arms of the children. The coat of arms of the first son contained the image of a "bridge" or "aqueduct" (aka lambel - tournament collar), the second son - a crescent with horns up, the third - a five-pointed star, and so on: a dove, two circles, a lily, a marshmallow flower …
There were cases when only a woman was the sole heir to the property, fortune and coat of arms of her father. In this case, the coats of arms of her children should be divided into four parts. In parts 1 and 4, the father's coat of arms was located, well, and the 2nd and 3rd were assigned to the mother's coat of arms. So it turned out that during the life of a person, his coat of arms after some events in his family could well have changed.
Well, and what figures on the coat of arms could describe the high moral feelings of its owner: strength, wealth, loyalty to duty? It turns out to be the simplest. These are geometric patterns on the shield, which are commonly called "honorific". They are considered as such, since they occupy a special place in heraldry, and in blazoning (as the description of the coat of arms is called) they are always called immediately after the shield itself.
It is interesting that many honorary heraldic figures can, so to speak, "shrink" and appear on the shield in two or three. The same straight cross can be a "narrow straight cross", and instead of one rafter or pillar, the emblem can have three narrow rafters or three narrow pillars.
In addition to the "honorable" ones, there are also known "simple heraldic figures". Moreover, all of them are also related to the shape and design of the shield. For example, "border". Well, it is clear how this figure appeared: a kind of reinforcement was stuffed on the shield along the edge, most likely made of metal - hence the border. The inner border is between the edge of the shield and its middle. The French heralds gave it the name "fake shield" ("through shield"). Moreover, there is just an inner border, but there is a narrow one. The lattice-weave shield was called "lattice-covered".
An interesting "free part" - a square in the upper right corner. Usually some kind of image was placed in it, but at the same time it served to indicate family ties. Shingle is a vertically oriented bar. Usually one shingle is never depicted. They are scattered over the field of the shield, and then the shield is described as "strewn with shingles." There is also such a simple figure as the "circle". Mugs, like shingles, for example, come in both colors and metals. There are circles - "coins" or "bisantes" (in honor of the Byzantine gold coin). But if the circle is red, then it is "guz" ("tartlet"), blue - "edge". If the circle is blue, and wavy lines are drawn in it, then this is a "fountain".
The coat of arms of the English Stourton family is interesting, or rather, its history. In the distant past, their family owned a land on which there were three springs that formed the source of the Stourt River, and three springs were nearby, but beyond its border. So the family coat of arms began to describe its land ownership very well.
