heraldry in fiction (belles-lettres)
sqlain
If you know the examples of blazons or heraldic words used in English
and American belles-lettres literature (fiction), please, kindly give
references, as many as possible! I have already read Shakespeare and
Walter Scott. Thanks in advance!
Turenne
Ferdinand de Gramont (1815-1897), a friend of Balzac, helped him
invent coats of arms for the various families of the writer's novels.
They were illustrated and collected in an armory, published by Fernand
Lotte: Armorial de la Comédie Humaine (Paris, Garnier, 1963).
Dumas: The Count of Monte Cristo
aux armes de Monte-Cristo, armes représentant
une montagne d'or, posant sur une mer
d'azur, avec une croix de gueules au chef
Proust: Remembrance of Things Past
non, ce ne sont pas les nôtres, répondit M. De Cambremer. Nous
portons d'or à trois fasces bretèchées et contre- bretèchées de
gueules à cinq pièces, chacune chargée d'un trèfle d'or...
.........and some cool Shakespearian stuff:
http://www.heraldica.org/topics/shakespeare.htm
Richard L
Turenne
the Wimsey arms (from memory) azure, three mice argent 2:1. Motto "As
My Whimsy Takes Me".
Ben Jonson makes several references to heraldry here:
Samuel Pepys:
"Sir W. Warren came himself to the door and left a letter and box for
me, and went his way. His letter mentions his giving me and my wife a
pair of gloves; but, opening the box, we found a pair of plain white
gloves for my hand, and a fair state dish of silver, and cup, with my
arms, ready cut upon them, worth, I believe, about 18l., .........
Richard L
Nathaniel Taylor
<4432c69a-2735-4421...@l2g2000yqd.googlegroups.com>,
Turenne <rick.l...@virgin.net> wrote:
> .........and some cool Shakespearian stuff:
>
> http://www.heraldica.org/topics/shakespeare.htm
A dozen white luces / louses, courant. I remember this; splendid. I
think Wimsey's mice were courant too.
Nat Taylor
a genealogist's sketchbook:
http://www.nltaylor.net/sketchbook/
Joseph McMillan
How about the arms of the runaway slave, Jim, in "Huckleberry Finn,"
as devised by Tom Sawyer?
"On the scutcheon we'll have a bend OR in the dexter base, a saltire
MURREY in the fess, with a dog, couchant, for common charge, and under
his foot a chain embattled, for slavery, with a chevron VERT in a
chief engrailed, and three invected lines on a field AZURE, with the
nombril points rampant on a dancette indented; crest, a runaway
nigger, SABLE, with his bundle over his shoulder on a bar sinister;
and a couple of gules for supporters, which is you and me; motto,
MAGGIORE FRETTA, MINORE OTTO. Got it out of a book—means the more
haste the less speed."
sqlain
> Lord Peter Wimsey (Dorothy L. Sayers) alludes in one of his books to
> the Wimsey arms (from memory) azure, three mice argent 2:1. Motto "As
> My Whimsy Takes Me".
>
> Ben Jonson makes several references to heraldry here:
>
>
> Samuel Pepys:
>
> "Sir W. Warren came himself to the door and left a letter and box for
> me, and went his way. His letter mentions his giving me and my wife a
> pair of gloves; but, opening the box, we found a pair of plain white
> gloves for my hand, and a fair state dish of silver, and cup, with my
> arms, ready cut upon them, worth, I believe, about 18l., .........
>
> Richard L
Thank you! Jonson's is especially useful!
sqlain
> haste the less speed."
Thanks! I have not many blazons from American fiction so this one is
really great!
sqlain
> In article
> <4432c69a-2735-4421-b34c-ebfd9466f...@l2g2000yqd.googlegroups.com>,
>
> Turenne <rick.lich...@virgin.net> wrote:
> > .........and some cool Shakespearian stuff:
>
> >http://www.heraldica.org/topics/shakespeare.htm
>
> A dozen white luces / louses, courant. I remember this; splendid. I
> think Wimsey's mice were courant too.
>
> Nat Taylor
> a genealogist's sketchbook: http://www.nltaylor.net/sketchbook/
Thank you! François Velde mentions two books there and now i am aching
to find them though it is difficult because of my location
Turenne
> think Wimsey's mice were courant too.
You're right. The supporters are two Saracens, and the crest is a
domestic cat!
Here's a fun story about how the arms came about.......
http://www.amazon.com/Wimsey-Family-Fragmentary-Compiled-Correspondence/product-reviews/0060139986
Richard
Joseph McMillan
Are you including poetry? This is from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's
"The Wayside Inn:"
From Longfellow's "The Wayside Inn" (1862), set in the Howe Tavern in
Sudbury, Mass.:
But first the Landlord will I trace :
Grave in his aspect and attire ;
A man of ancient pedigree,
A Justice of the Peace was he,
Known in all Sudbury as "The Squire."
Proud was he of his name and race,
Of old Sir William and Sir Hugh,
And in the parlor, full in view,
His coat-of-arms, well framed and glazed,
Upon the wall in colors blazed ;
He beareth gules upon his shield,
A chevron argent in the field,
With three wolfs heads, and for the crest
A Wyvern part-per-pale addressed
Upon a helmet barred; below
The scroll reads, "By the name of Howe."
Joseph McMillan
Turenne
>Upon a helmet barred; below
>The scroll reads, "By the name of Howe."
I wonder why "The Squire." had a peers' helmet?
Richard L
Jarry
"The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power,
"And all that beauty, all that wealth e'er gave,
"Awaits alike th' inevitable hour:-
"The paths of glory lead but to the grave.
Not quite heraldic terminology, but a mention none-the-less.
Jarry
GFL
The following is in Polish but is available in translation. The Nobel
Laureate Henryk Sienkiewicz in his trilogy "With Fire and Sword", "The
Deluge" and "Lord Wolodyjowski" covers a swath of mid 17th century
history dealing with Polish wars - the Cossack Rebellion, Swedish
invasion and war with Turkey. His works follow the role of both
historical and fictional nobles in these matters and he identifies the
arms of dozens of indiviuals (some real arms and some fictional). The
same is true of his book "The Teutonic Knights". I understand that it
was his interest in heraldry that inspired him to write his trilogy.
Another Polish writer who intersperses heraldic references in his
works is Witold Gombrowicz (Transatlantic) a self-referential work in
which he struggles with heroism and anachronism in his own noble
heritage.
But the most direct reference would be the "Poczet herbow - Roll of
Arms" (1696) an armorial of sorts but really collection of baroque
poems each devoted to a different coat of arms referencing a variety
of things such as war cry, charges, blason, legendary origin, etc.
http://www.pbi.edu.pl/book_reader.php?p=41492
I don't think it has ever been translated into English.
David Cameron Staples
How far back do you want to go?
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, f99r
THEN þay schewed hym þe schelde, þat was of schyr goulez
Then they showed him the shield, which was of sheer (bright and clear)
gules
Wyth þe pentangel depaynt of pure golde hwez.
and was painted with a pentangle of pure gold
It then follows with a description of the symbology of the pentangle.
--
David Cameron Staples | staples AT unimelb DOT edu DOT au
Melbourne University | School of Engineering | IT Support
Not all chemicals are bad. Without chemicals such as hydrogen and oxygen,
for example, there would be no way to make water, a vital ingredient in
beer -- bash.org/?43242
Joseph McMillan
Another American example, the conclusion of Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The
Scarlet Letter:"
=========
And, after many, many years, a new grave was delved, near an old and
sunken one, in that burial-ground beside which King’s Chapel has since
been built. It was near that old and sunken grave, yet with a space
between, as if the dust of the two sleepers had no right to mingle.
Yet one tombstone served for both. All around, there were monuments
carved with armorial bearings; and on this simple slab of slate—as the
curious investigator may still discern, and perplex himself with the
purport—there appeared the semblance of an engraved escutcheon. It
bore a device, a herald’s wording of which might serve for a motto and
brief description of our now concluded legend; so sombre is it, and
relieved only by one ever-glowing point of light gloomier than the
shadow:— “On a field, sable, the letter A, gules”
===========
Joseph McMillan
Joseph McMillan
> Another American example, the conclusion of Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The
> Scarlet Letter:"
And yet another, from the same author's "The White Old Maid," one of
the
_Twice Told Tales_:
=======
"Whose grand coach is this?" asked a very inquisitive body.
The footman made no reply, but ascended the steps of the old house,
gave three raps, with the iron hammer, and returned to open the coach-
door. An old man, possessed of the heraldic lore so common in that
day, examined the shield of arms on the pannel.
"Azure, a lion`s head erased, between three flower de luces," said he;
then whispered the name of the family to whom these bearings belonged.
The last inheritor of its honors was recently dead, after a long
residence amid the splendor of the British court, where his birth and
wealth had given him no mean station. "He left no child," continued
the herald, "and these arms, being in a lozenge, betoken that the
coach appertains to his widow."
========
Joseph McMillan
Joseph McMillan
And one more from Edgar Allen Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado." The
narrator, Montresor, is asked about his family's arms:
=======
"A huge human foot d’or, in a field azure; the foot crushes a serpent
rampant whose fangs are imbedded in the heel.”
“And the motto?”
“Nemo me impune lacessit.”
========
Joseph McMillan
Joseph McMillan
Because "Upon a helmet visored; below" doesn't scan.
Joseph McMillan
Turenne
>
> Because "Upon a helmet visored; below" doesn't scan.
Ha Ha! Brilliant answer!
Richard
j.jar...@centrum.cz
Czech satire by Vaclav Kocmanek from 1664. There is more heraldry in
the poem, but I do not know enough English vulgarisms to translate it.
And the Czech original is in verses.
"Oh, oh, my coat of arms is better (...):
I have a pig´s shit as my sign,as you know.
In the swine´s piss, in the yellow field,(...)
because a pig is (...) more valiant than a swine."
Graham
What about Longfellow's poem:
The shades of night were falling fast,
As through an Alpine village passed
A youth, who bore, 'mid snow and ice,
A banner with the strange device,
Excelsior!
Presumably a motto is considered heraldic?
Joseph McMillan
"Upon a visored helm; below..."
But then putting the adjective before the noun would just be too
prosaic.
Turenne
I thought maybe 'Upon a helmet crown'd; below' might work....
Richard
sqlain
>
> Are you including poetry? This is from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's
> "The Wayside Inn:"
Yes, i want to take examples not only from prose, but poetry and drama
too because of their scattering...Could you please tell me, do you
remember the "home" of all these blazons or put the key words from
heraldry into search engines?
i have tried two corpora - Contemporary American and Contemporary
British but the problem is - they are too contemporary:) Several
pieces of contemporary fantasy contain blazons but not enough. And
when i try search engines with heraldic lexemes they give historical
sources mostly and not belles-lettres.
I am very-very grateful for your help!
sqlain
> Not quite heraldic terminology, but a mention none-the-less.
Thank you, it gives one more point of view of the concept of heraldry
and it remainds me of Orlando's words in the novel of the same name.
sqlain
Thank you of this mention, i like Henryk Sienkiewicz, unfortunately i
am limited only with British and American literature:( though Canadian
and Australian English examples would be interesting and probably
would go if any.
sqlain
wrote:
> How far back do you want to go?
> Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, f99r
As far as possible, no chronological limits, Old English is
appreciated, thank you!
I've heard of Chaucer blazons, i will try to find them tomorrow.
sqlain
> "Oh, oh, my coat of arms is better (...):
> I have a pig´s shit as my sign,as you know.
> In the swine´s piss, in the yellow field,(...)
> because a pig is (...) more valiant than a swine."
After that i would also like to find heraldic puns and plays with
heraldic words and heraldic jokes in English fiction. François Velde
mentioned this topic on his site if i am not mistaken...
Joseph McMillan
>...Could you please tell me, do you
> remember the "home" of all these blazons or put the key words from
> heraldry into search engines?
Some of them I remembered (Wayside Inn, Scarlet Letter, Cask of
Amontillado); others I found by searching by the name of a major
author and a commonly used heraldic term.
David Cameron Staples
Middle English, actually.
--
David Cameron Staples | staples AT unimelb DOT edu DOT au
Melbourne University | School of Engineering | IT Support
LITTLE GOLDEN BOOKS THAT NEVER MADE IT:
13. And Where Would You Like to Be Buried, Li'l Timmy?
Turenne
Could you please tell me, do you remember the "home" of all these
blazons or put the key words from heraldry into search engines?
I don't think there is a 'home' for the blazons. You just have to keep
on googling diffrent phrases like 'heraldry in plays' or 'blazons in
literature'.
Richard L
Graham
Of course, Lord of the Rings is stuffed full of heraldry - 'seven
stars and seven stone and one white tree' of Gondor, the white horse
of Rohan, the swan of Dol Amroth, the eye of Sauron, the white hand of
Saruman, and so on and so on.
The Mad Alchemist
> Of course, Lord of the Rings is stuffed full of heraldry - 'seven
> stars and seven stone and one white tree' of Gondor, the white horse
> of Rohan, the swan of Dol Amroth, the eye of Sauron, the white hand of
> Saruman, and so on and so on.
Guy Gavriel Kay's "A Song for Arbonne" has a banner for each of the
important characters. Every single one of them breaks the rule of
tincture. This was not a deliberate attempt to avoid duplication of
real arms- the author had no idea that there was such a rule, and was
amazed that any of his readers would know something as esoteric (in
his opinion) as a rule of heraldry.
sqlain
> > On 30 сен, 03:06, David Cameron Staples <stap...@cs.mu.oz.au.SPAM>
> > wrote:
>
> >> How far back do you want to go?
> >> Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, f99r
>
> > As far as possible, no chronological limits, Old English is appreciated,
> > thank you!
>
Sorry, i was mistaken. But Old English is appreciated nevertheless:)
sqlain
> Of course, Lord of the Rings is stuffed full of heraldry
thanks! i really suspect all fantasy genre of having some mentions
sqlain
> Guy Gavriel Kay's "A Song for Arbonne" has a banner for each of the
> important characters. Every single one of them breaks the rule of
> tincture. This was not a deliberate attempt to avoid duplication of
> real arms- the author had no idea that there was such a rule, and was
> amazed that any of his readers would know something as esoteric (in
> his opinion) as a rule of heraldry.
Thank you! For me false heraldry is also suitable if it contains
heraldic lexemes.
Turenne
Richard Lichten
davidappleton
> I've just found this brilliant reference in Huckleberry Finn:
>
>
> Richard Lichten
There's a thread, complete with Twain's own attempt at an emblazon of
these arms, in the forum of the American Heraldry Society, at:
http://americanheraldry.org/forums/showthread.php?t=161&page=2
David
Joseph McMillan
>
> There's a thread, complete with Twain's own attempt at an emblazon of
> these arms, in the forum of the American Heraldry Society, at:http://americanheraldry.org/forums/showthread.php?t=161&page=2
>
the AHS won't be able to access it. Here's a direct link to the
image:
http://etext.virginia.edu/images/modeng/public/Twa2Huc/twah385b.jpg
Joseph McMillan
davidappleton
> Unfortunately, as this is in the members only section, non members of
> the AHS won't be able to access it. Here's a direct link to the
> image:
>
> http://etext.virginia.edu/images/modeng/public/Twa2Huc/twah385b.jpg
Aw, heck, Joe! Try to get 'em to join! It doesn't cost that much,
and the AHS forum is one of the most active heraldry forums on the
internet.
David
George T SLC
The 7 stones weren't on the arms, just the arch of stars above the
tree (argent on sable, of course).
And if Kay's arms did simple black on red (sable on gules) designs or
vice versa, there is in fact a lot of European heraldry that supports
the practice; one of our SCA heralds did research showing that for her
SCA-registered arms. If not, what *were* they--and why don't I
remember noticing that when I read it?
Madalch
> And if Kay's arms did simple black on red (sable on gules) designs or
> vice versa, there is in fact a lot of European heraldry that supports
> the practice; one of our SCA heralds did research showing that for her
> SCA-registered arms. If not, what *were* they--and why don't I
> remember noticing that when I read it?
There is some European heraldry that does this, but it is in the
minority.
Kay's banners were either Or on Argent, Azure on Gules, Gules on
Azure, etc. It seemed that the royalty had two metals, and the nobles
had two colours (but I may be remembering that bit wrong).
The banners were a minor part of the story- easily missed.
guy
Court_, p. 114
"...And then there was Sir Gawaine ware how they hung a white shield
on that tree, and ever as the damsels came by it they spit upon it,
and some threw mire upon the shield --"
Joseph McMillan
> Twain, Mark (Clemmens, Samuel), _A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's
> Court_, p. 114
>
> "...And then there was Sir Gawaine ware how they hung a white shield
> on that tree, and ever as the damsels came by it they spit upon it,
> and some threw mire upon the shield --"
>
Actually a quotation from the Morte d'Arthur.
Joseph McMillan
guy
>
> Actually a quotation from the Morte d'Arthur.
>
> Joseph McMillan
Thanks Joe. Revised to read, "As quoted in _A Connecticut Yankee in
King Arthur's Court_ p.114."
--Guy