In
heraldryHeraldry is the profession, study, or art of devising, granting, and blazoning arms and ruling on questions of rank or protocol, as exercised by an officer of arms. Heraldry comes from Anglo-Norman herald, from the Germanic compound *harja-waldaz, "army commander"...
, an
escutcheon , or
scutcheon, is the
shieldA shield is a protective device, meant to intercept attacks, either by stopping projectiles such as arrows or by glancing a blow to the side of the shield-user. Shields vary greatly in size, ranging from large shilds that protect the user's entire body to small shields that are mostly for use in...
displayed in a
coat of armsA coat of arms, more properly called an armorial achievement, armorial bearings or often just arms for short, in European tradition, is a design belonging to a particular person and used by them in a wide variety of ways. Historically, they were used by knights to identify them apart from enemy...
. The term "
crestA crest is a component of an heraldic display, so called because it stands on top of a helmet, as the crest of a jay stands on the bird's head....
" is often used incorrectly to designate this part of the coat of arms. The escutcheon shape is based on the Medieval shields that were used by
knightA knight was a "gentleman soldier" or member of the warrior class of the Middle Ages in Europe. In other Indo-European languages, cognates of cavalier or rider are more prevalent suggesting a connection to the knight's mode of transport...
s in combat, and varied by region and time period accordingly. Since this shape has been regarded as a war-like device appropriate to men only, British ladies customarily bear their arms upon a
lozengeThe lozenge in heraldry is a diamond-shaped charge , usually somewhat narrower than it is tall. It is to be distinguished in modern heraldry from the fusil, which is like the lozenge but narrower, though the distinction has not always been as fine and is not always observed even today...
, or diamond-shape, while clergymen and ladies in continental Europe bear theirs on a
cartoucheA cartouche is an oval or oblong design with a slightly convex surface, typically edged with ornamental scrollwork. It is used to hold a painted or low relief design....
, or oval.
In
heraldryHeraldry is the profession, study, or art of devising, granting, and blazoning arms and ruling on questions of rank or protocol, as exercised by an officer of arms. Heraldry comes from Anglo-Norman herald, from the Germanic compound *harja-waldaz, "army commander"...
, an
escutcheon , or
scutcheon, is the
shieldA shield is a protective device, meant to intercept attacks, either by stopping projectiles such as arrows or by glancing a blow to the side of the shield-user. Shields vary greatly in size, ranging from large shilds that protect the user's entire body to small shields that are mostly for use in...
displayed in a
coat of armsA coat of arms, more properly called an armorial achievement, armorial bearings or often just arms for short, in European tradition, is a design belonging to a particular person and used by them in a wide variety of ways. Historically, they were used by knights to identify them apart from enemy...
. The term "
crestA crest is a component of an heraldic display, so called because it stands on top of a helmet, as the crest of a jay stands on the bird's head....
" is often used incorrectly to designate this part of the coat of arms. The escutcheon shape is based on the Medieval shields that were used by
knightA knight was a "gentleman soldier" or member of the warrior class of the Middle Ages in Europe. In other Indo-European languages, cognates of cavalier or rider are more prevalent suggesting a connection to the knight's mode of transport...
s in combat, and varied by region and time period accordingly. Since this shape has been regarded as a war-like device appropriate to men only, British ladies customarily bear their arms upon a
lozengeThe lozenge in heraldry is a diamond-shaped charge , usually somewhat narrower than it is tall. It is to be distinguished in modern heraldry from the fusil, which is like the lozenge but narrower, though the distinction has not always been as fine and is not always observed even today...
, or diamond-shape, while clergymen and ladies in continental Europe bear theirs on a
cartoucheA cartouche is an oval or oblong design with a slightly convex surface, typically edged with ornamental scrollwork. It is used to hold a painted or low relief design....
, or oval. Other shapes are possible, such as the
roundelA roundel in heraldry is any circular shape; the term is also commonly used to refer to a type of national insignia used on military aircraft, generally circular in shape and usually comprising concentric rings of different colours.-Heraldry:...
commonly used for arms granted to Aboriginal Canadians by the
Canadian Heraldic AuthorityThe Canadian Heraldic Authority is part of the Canadian honours system under the Queen of Canada, whose authority is exercised by the Governor General. The Authority is responsible for the creation and granting of new coats of arms , flags and badges for Canadian citizens, permanent residents and...
.
The word
escutcheon is derived from
Middle EnglishMiddle English is the name given by historical linguists to the diverse forms of the English language in use between the late 11th century and about 1470, when the Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the introduction of the printing...
escochon, from
Anglo-NormanThe Anglo-Norman language is a term traditionally used to refer to the variety of Old Norman used in England and to some extent elsewhere in the British Isles during the Anglo-Norman period. When William the Conqueror led the Norman invasion of England, he, his nobles, and many of his followers...
escuchon, from
Vulgar LatinVulgar Latin can be defined simply as colloquial Latin.-Origin of the term:...
scūtiōn-, from
LatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Roman conquest, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe...
scūtum, "shield". Derived from its meaning in heraldry, the term "escutcheon" can be used to represent a family and its honour. A family member who does something shameful can be described as a "blot on the escutcheon."
An
inescutcheon is a smaller shield that is shown within or superimposed over the main shield. This may be used for heraldic style, in
pretense (to bear another's arms over one's own), to bear one's own personal arms over the territorial arms of his/her domains, or as a simple charge.
Points
The following are the points of the shield used in
blazonIn heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of, most often, a coat of arms or flag, which enables a person to construct or reconstruct the appropriate image...
s to describe where (and how) a
chargeIn heraldry, a charge is any emblem or device occupying the field of an escutcheon . This may be a geometric design or a symbolic representation of a person, animal, plant, object or other device...
should be drawn:
- A - Chief
- B - Dexter
- C - Sinister
- D - Base
- E - Dexter Chief
- F - Middle Chief
- G - Sinister Chief
|
|
H - Honour Point
I - Fess Point
J - Nombril Point
K - Dexter Base
L - Sinister Base
M - Middle Base (seldom used) |
Inescutcheon
An
inescutcheon is a smaller escutcheon that is placed within or superimposed over the main shield of a coat of arms. This may be used for style, in
pretense, for territorial claims, or as a simple charge. Inescutcheons may be placed within the field of a shield as a choice of heraldic style, such as in the arms of the Swedish Collegium of Arms (pictured at far left below) which bears the
three crownsThree Crowns is a national emblem of Sweden, present in the Coat of Arms of the Realm of Sweden, and composed by three yellow or gilded coronets ordered two above and one below, placed on a blue background....
of Sweden, each upon its own escutcheon within the field of the main shield. Inescutcheons may also be used to bear another's arms in "pretense", In
English HeraldryEnglish heraldry is the form of coats of arms and other heraldic bearings and insignia used in England. It lies within the Gallo-British tradition. Coats of arms in England are regulated and granted to individuals by the College of Arms. They are subject to a system of cadency to distinguish...
the husband of a
heraldic heiressIn English heraldry an heraldic heiress is a daughter of deceased man who was entitled to a coat of arms and who carries forward the right to those arms for the benefit of her future male descendents...
- a woman without any brothers - may place her father's arms in an
escutcheon of pretence in the centre of his own shield as a
claim ("pretense") to be the head of his wife's family. In the next generation the arms would then be
quarteredQuartering in heraldry is a method of joining several different coats of arms together in one shield by dividing the shield into equal parts and placing different coats of arms in each division....
.
Baron and FemeIn English law, Baron and Feme is a phrase used for husband and wife, in relation to each other, who are accounted as one person. Hence, by the old law of evidence, the one party was excluded from giving evidence for or against the other in civil questions, and a relic of this is still preserved in...
describe another iteration of the escutcheon. In similar fashion, one may bear one's own arms inescutcheon
en surtout over the territorial arms of his/her domains, such as in the arms of the
Danish Royal FamilyThe Danish Royal Family includes The Queen of Denmark and her family. All members hold the title of Prince or Princess of Denmark with the style of His or Her Royal Highness , or His or Her Highness...
, the greater
coat of arms of SwedenThe greater national coat of arms and the lesser national coat of arms are the official coats of arms of Sweden.- Shield :The shield has four elements:...
, or the arms of the
Commonwealth of EnglandThe Commonwealth of England, from 1653-1659 the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland, was the republican government which ruled first England and Wales, and then Ireland and Scotland from 1649 to 1660. Some would call this government a "crowned" republican government...
1649-1660. Inescutcheons also appear in personal and civic armory as simple common charges (for example, see the arms of the noble French family of Abbeville, pictured at far right below).
Further reading
- Fox-Davies, Arthur Charles (1909). A Complete Guide to Heraldry. New York: Dodge Pub. Co.