In heraldry, a crest is a component of a coat of arms. It is a figure (or group of figures), often but not always a beast of some kind, depicted atop the helmet placed above the shield. The crest has been traditionally used by men only, with the exception of queens of England or Britain, who have been treated heraldically as men. Heraldry is the science and art of describing coats-of-arms, also referred to as armorial bearings or simply as arms. Its origins lie in the need to distinguish participants in battles or jousts and to describe the various devices they carried or painted on their shields. ... A modern coat of arms is derived from the medi val practice of painting designs onto the shield and outer clothing of knights to enable them to be identified in battle, and later in tournaments. ... Statue showing a Gallic shield with a butterfly boss. ... Wikimedia Commons has media related to: England Inter. ...
Some armigers used their crest as a personal badge, which led to the erroneous use of the word "crest" to describe a shield or full coat of arms. An armiger is a person entitled to use a coat of arms. ...
The Heraldry Series
Blazon | Crest | Compartment | Field | Line | Mantling | Quartering | Shield | Supporters | Tincture Heraldry is the science and art of describing coats-of-arms, also referred to as armorial bearings or simply as arms. Its origins lie in the need to distinguish participants in battles or jousts and to describe the various devices they carried or painted on their shields. ... This is an article about Heraldry. ... In heraldry, a compartment is a design placed under the shield, usually rocks, a grassy mount, or some sort of other landscape upon which the supporters are depicted as standing (a compartment without supporters is possible but practically unknown, with the exception of South Australia[1]). It is sometimes said... In heraldry the background of the shield is called the field . ... A chief enarched indented throughout in the arms of Sawbridgeworth A fess wavy in the arms of Welwyn Hatfield A chief embattled in the arms of Letchworth The lines used to divide and vary fields and charges in heraldry are by default straight, but may have many different shapes. ... In heraldry, mantling is drapery depicted tied to the helmet above the shield. ... Quartering in heraldry is a method of joining several different coats of arms together in one shield by dividing the shield into not more than four equal parts and placing different coats of arms in each division. ... In heraldry, the shield is the principal portion of a heraldic achievement or coat of arms. ... In heraldry, supporters are figures placed on either side of the shield and depicted holding it up. ... In heraldry, tinctures are the colours used to blazon a coat of arms. ...
Bend | Canton | Chevron | Chief | Cross | Fess | Fillet | Flaunch | Pall | Pale | Saltire A blue-and-white striped bend (a bend barry wavy argent and azure), in the arms of Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council In heraldry, a bend is a colored band that runs from the upper left (as seen by the viewer) corner of the shield to the lower right. ... Canton is a division of the field placed in the upper dexter corner. ... This page is about the pattern or symbol called a chevron. ... We dont have an article called Chief (heraldry) Start this article Search for Chief (heraldry) in. ... These crosses are ones used exclusively or primarily in heraldry, and do not necessarily have any special meanings commonly associated with them. ... A fess is a term used in heraldry to describe a charge on a coat of arms that takes the form of a band running from the left to the right side of the shield, centered from top to bottom. ... Fillet was an early cooking webzine dedicated to fine dining, which appeared in HotWired from 1996-1997. ... Flaunches, in the arms of the town of Harlow A flaunch, in heraldry, is (arguably) an ordinary, one of two (as the flaunch is never borne singly) semicircles protruding into the field from the sides of the shield. ... A pall is a Y shaped heraldic charge. ... The shield above depicts a black pale placed on a gold shield, and its blazon is A pale is a term used in heraldic blazon to describe a charge on a coat of arms that takes the form of a band running vertically down the center of the shield. ... The arms of St Albans: a gold saltire on a blue field A saltire is an X-shaped figure in heraldry. ...
The earliest heraldic crests were apparently painted on metal fans, and usually repeated the coat of arms painted on the shield.
Today, the crests of new Knights of the Garter and Bath are carved from lime wood by sculptor Ian G Brennan for display in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle (Garter) and Henry VII Lady Chapel in Westminster Abbey (Bath).
In Germany and nearby countries, the crest often repeats the liveries in the form of a tall hat, a fan of plumes in alternating colors, or a pair of curving horns.
Crests are not normally borne by women or clergy, because they do not participate in war or tournaments and thus would not have a helm on which to wear it.
Some armigers used their crest as a personal badge, leading to the erroneous use of the word "crest" to describe a shield or full coat of arms.
There is a widespread misconception that a crest and a coat of arms belong to everyone with the same family name or several people descended from the same matriculator; this is due in part to Victorian stationers' marketing of engraved letterheads and in part to pretensions; this constitutes usurpation.
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