Since you all seem wittier than me, I’m asking for your input.  Can you think of any cants on my surname (Pope) besides the following:

Direct Cants on "Pope":

Popinjay

Poppy

Indirect Cants on "the Pope"

pall (symbolizing the pallium)

crossed keys

I appreciate your help.

David

I think you’ve got it covered as best you can, though I think the pall and the crossed keys are too abstract for most people to get. Though it is not exclusive to the pope, I think most people associate the mitre with the pope.

I don’t know about a cant on your surname, but it seems that some variation of “Or two chevrons Gules” is quite common in other “Pope” arms, some of them adding a red chief changed with either a gold mullet or shell.

I’m sure that you can work in your Eastern Dogwood flower (from your badge/avatar) somehow:

Gules, two chevrons Or, between three Eastern Dogwood flowers proper

or

Argent, two chevrons Gules, on a chief of the last three Eastern Dogwood flowers proper

Looking back over your thread from the first half of 2011, you seemed to like the look of the engrained line.  Perhaps:

Gules, on a chevron engrailed Or, between three Eastern Dogwood flowers proper, a chevronel Gules

Personally, I might hesitate to use a pall or the crossed keys.  Maybe you could use the so-called papal cross (the one with three bars of decreasing length)?  Or maybe use three bars – this recalling the Pope’s triple tiara, the three arms on the aforementioned cross, or the three stripy-things on the miter that Joseph Ratzinger used above his arms as Benedict XVI.  For one idea:

Gules, above three bars Argent, as many Eastern Dogwood flowers proper

rather Geroge Wahington-esque now that I think about it.

Thanks for the suggestions thus far.  I’m currently engaged in perhaps the world’s longest ever "fridge test".

Here’s a few other canting options:

The Pope/Ruffe fish (I had no idea there was such a thing…):

http://www.cardcow.com/images/set253/card00455_fr.jpg

The Poopdeck of a ship (the more other obvious scatalogical cant being ignored…)

http://www.heraldry.ca/kids_en/kids_images/CP_ancient_ship.gif

A Poplar tree

I’ve been leery of using symbols which may be interpreted as signifying a literal connection to the papacy, so those are on the list, but not likely.

Your basic shield could be “Gules on a fess engrailed Or two bars of the first”.  That would give you the same livery as the other Popes – where they used chevrons, you are using bars.  It includes the engrailed line that you were testing before.  The three horizontal lines created by the fess charged with two bars can have for you the same papal allusions aforementioned.

Your white dogwood blossoms could be placed either three across the top, or as two above the fess and one below.

David Pope;97967 wrote:

Thanks for the suggestions thus far.  I’m currently engaged in perhaps the world’s longest ever "fridge test".

Mine was 3-1/2 years, so don’t get discouraged.  It is well worth it in the end!

Quote:

The Pope/Ruffe fish (I had no idea there was such a thing…):

As a Harris I likely should have used a hedgehog for the sake of the cant, but I did not feel overly compelled to do so.

Quote:

I’ve been leery of using symbols which may be interpreted as signifying a literal connection to the papacy, so those are on the list, but not likely.

wise –

I suppose you could use pips, but that might imply that you’re a seedy character.

Stick with what you’ve got!!