- letters of the Alphabet

LETTERS of the Greek, Hebrew, Roman, Text, and other Alphabets are borne in Coat Armour, either singly, or in words. e.g. The Greek Alpha A and Ω Omega form part of the arms of the Regius Professor of Greek at Cambridge ; and the Professor of Hebrew has the Hebrew letter Hhet ח. See Upsilon, etc.

“ The text r (готического начертания) pierced through with a dash in the centre in the arms of Battle Abbey ”

                 “ Now though I have read letters to be little honourable in arms, this cannot be dis-graceful, partly because Church-Heraldry moveth in a sphere by itself, partly because this was the letter of letters, as the received character to signify CHRISTUS. ” Fuller’s Church History, vol. ii. P. 227. (ELVN)

Letters of the Alphabet

« – буквы алфавита

фр. letters

Иногда используются как геральдические фигуры. Следующие примеры достаточны для того, чтобы показать различные способы использования букв алфавита. Буквы могут быть старого шрифта, или греческие, или римские, и отсюда определяется тип буквы. Значение буквы как гербовой фигуры не всегда очевидно. Когда встречается М, - это без сомнения означает Мария (Maria or Mary).

«Sable, on a fesse between two cinquefoils in chief argent, and on a mount in base three sprigs of oak proper, acorned or, the text letters ABCDEF of the field» – LANG.

«Gules, three text S's or» – KEKITMORE.

«Argent, a chevron(another two chevrons) between three text T's sable» – TOFTE.

«Azure, a cross argent charged with the letter x, in the fesse point, and the letter i, in the honour point, both sable» – CHRIST CHURCH PRIORY, Canterbury .

«Argent, a cross gules with a letter r in the centre» – City of ROCHESTER.

«Party per chevron argent and sable, in chief the Greek letters A and Ω of the second, in base a grasshopper of the first; on a chief gules a lion passant guardant or» – Greek Professorship at CAMBRIDGE, granted 1590.

«Sable, on a pale argent a Greek upsilon gules» – CLARK, London, granted 21 Jan. 1604.

«Argent, on a cross azure the letter M crowned or» – Arms ascribed to William, de ST.MARY'S CHURCH, Bishop of London, 1199-1221; Simon MEPHAM, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1328-33; Simon SUDBURY, alias TYBOLD, Bishop of London, 1362; Archbishop of Canterbury, 1375-81.

«Per chevron or and vert, in chief the letter M sable, in base a falcon of the first» – John MARSHALL, Bishop of Llandaff, 1478-96.

«Gules, on a fesse argent a Roman A» – ALTHOUN.

«Per pale, sable and argent, three Roman B's counterchanged» – BRIDLINGTON PRIORY, Yorkshire.

«Or, a capital Z gules» – DE ZEDDES.

«Argent, a fesse between three S's sable» – SHUGLEY, co. Chester.

«Azure, a lion rampant argent resting his dexter hind-foot on the letter H» – Town of HORSHAM, Sussex.

Иногда используются цифры и астрономические знаки.

«Azure, three figures of 7 two and one» – BERNARD.

«Per fesse argent and or, a fesse wavy azure between a sword and a branch of aurel is saltire proper passing a ring of the astronomical character of Mars[ ] sable in chief, and the stump of a tree, one branch sprouting from the dexter side thereof issuing from water in base proper» – STOCKENSTORM, Maasstrom, Cape of Good Hope, Baronet, 1840.

«Azure, on a fesse between three mullets of six points or two characters of the planet Venus sable» – THOYTS, Sulhamstead, co. Berks, and London; granted 1788.

Иногда используется комбинация из букв, что чаще бывает в гласных гербах и в ребусах. Разные надписи (названия мест, имена людей) встречаютс непосредственно в гербе или, иногда, на свитке. См., например, ACRE в ст. Sphinx; NAKSIVAN, в ст. Ararat; EMMANUEL, в ст. Escroll, &c

«Argent, on a chevron between three cock's heads erased, the two in chief respectant sable, an escallop-shell or, in chief the letters A L azure» – ALCOCK.

«Azure, a paschal lamb couchant with the banner all argent; round the head a nimbus or, in base the letters P P of the last» – Town of PRESTON, co. Lancaster.

«Azure, in chief a scroll argent inscribed B R E, in fesse a tun of the second» – BRETON.

«Gules, a bugle-horn stringed and garnished within the word RIPPON in orle » – Town of RIPON.

The word «eye» under an antique ducal coronet – Town of EYE, Suffolk.

«Per chief embattled azure and gules; in chief the letters JOHES or; in base a tun of the last thereon the letters BRIT sable» – The late John BRITTON. F.S.A.

«Sable, a lion rampant argent holding between the paws a mural crown or, a canton ermine thereon pendent by a riband gules fimbriated azure a representation of the medal presented for services subinscribed WATERLOO in letters sable» – CHURCHILL.

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