I’m new to the forum and anxious to get to learning. To that end, I’m looking for some guidance in blazoning this Emblem. It’s the emblem for the Pipe & Drum band, of which I am a student member.
I’m not even sure what to call it. Some posts I’ve seen have called this type of design a badge, but some books I have seem to consider badges to be something completely different.
I’m not really looking for someone to give me the blazon (Because what fun would that be?), but there are some specific questions I have regarding this design that I simply can’t find the answers to.
BTW, I’m not trying to get the blazon to register it (though that might happen later). I’m creating the blazon to include on a plaque we are giving out pipe major. I understand that it does not follow some of the rules of design, but I have no control over the design
Basic Question: What are the rules for blazoning something that it not a shield?
Flag Question: Do I describe the elements of the NC State Flag, or do I just use the describe the inner design as a whole by calling it "The Flag of the State of North Carolina"?
Ringed Text: How does one go about including the text and the small "icons" within what I assume is an annulet?
Any help to get me moving would be much appreciated.
Dale C. Roe
The badge is interesting because it appears to have a number of (deliberate?) mistakes.
The crowned "star" backing is normally called a "Garter Star" and is typical of badges of British police forces and a few regiments or corps, see below for the Royal Army Service Corps
http://www.lionelbeck.net/img/ns/rascbadge.gif
However, the crown is not an heraldic representation of one of the British crowns since they have four arches rather than the eight arched crown shown. It looks more Spanish than British in its form.
http://personales.mundivia.es/luisan/CReal.gif
Here are my first thoughts on blazon
Upon a Garter Star Argent crowned by the Spanish Crown Or a roundel of the flag of North Carolina (per pale Azure a star Argent flanked by the letters N and C Or, in chief and base escrolls also Or charged with the inscriptions "May 20, 1775" and "April 12, 1776" respectively, and per Fess Gules and White) all within a circlet Sable, edged Argent charged in chief with the words "Wake & District" and in base with the words "Public Safety Pipes & Drums" also Argent
I have put my blazon of the North Carolina flag in brackets because I think you could probably get away without blazoning it.
BTW, any particular reason for using MacBeth tartan?
James
James Dempster;55794 wrote:
The badge is interesting because it appears to have a number of (deliberate?) mistakes.
You have a good eye. Yes there are several mistakes, and from speaking with the designer of the emblem, they are deliberate.
James Dempster;55794 wrote:
The crowned "star" backing is normally called a "Garter Star" and is typical of badges of British police forces and a few regiments or corps, see below for the Royal Army Service Corps
And I believe that the British and Canadian Military pipe bands also use them, so our band, which is laden with police, firefighters, paramedics, and active and retired military, thought it fitting as a backdrop.
James Dempster;55794 wrote:
However, the crown is not an heraldic representation of one of the British crowns since they have four arches rather than the eight arched crown shown. It looks more Spanish than British in its form.
The crown in the emblem was deliberately changed so that it was not a representation of the crown of any country. I don’t know what style he used as a starting point, but he added a plain Celtic cross and changed the leaves to Oak Leaves in honor of NC. My understanding is that much of the symbolism of pipe bands is derived from British and Canadian emblems, so the crown is more of a tradition than anything else, but the changes to the crown were made so that the symbolism is ascribed to no other country or monarchy.
James Dempster;55794 wrote:
Here are my first thoughts on blazon
Wow. Thank you for that. I do have one additional question…what about the little silver badges included in the circlet?
James Dempster;55794 wrote:
BTW, any particular reason for using MacBeth tartan?
It’s actually the Black Stewart Tartan. However, I’ve zoomed in pretty far and made the swatch partially transparent so that has likely altered it’s look a bit.
Raleigh is the City of Oaks, which would be the reason for the the oak leaves. North Carolina’s tree is the pine. 
dcroe05;55792 wrote:
Basic Question: What are the rules for blazoning something that it not a shield?
If one is going to blazon a freestanding heraldic badge or a badge on a roundel or breast star of an order, one should start with the main element first, that being the largest element that gives the badge its form.
An example of this being: On a breast star of the Order of the Garter surmounted by an Iberian sovereign crown Proper, a roundel charged with the dexter 2/3 of the flag of the State of North Carolina Proper encompassed within a bordure Sable, bearing the words "Wake & District" above and "Public Safety Pipes & Drums" below Argent.
I called the crown Iberian because it is most like the stylised Portuguese Royal Crown used by the present Duke of Braganca rather than the crown used by King Juan Carlos I.
Unlike James I left out the little silver bands between the roundel and the bordure. I find that these little bordures often are not actually part of the design but rather the cloissons between the enamels used by the medal maker. Often these little silver or gold bands will make their way into the blazon. Let us know if this lines are part of the blazon or the result of the badge manufacturing process.
kmansfield;55810 wrote:
Raleigh is the City of Oaks, which would be the reason for the the oak leaves. North Carolina’s tree is the pine.
Actually I didn’t know that. Although my family hails from NC, I’ve only lived here for slightly under 2 years.
David Pritchard;55818 wrote:
Unlike James I left out the little silver bands between the roundel and the bordure. I find that these little bordures often are not actually part of the design but rather the cloissons between the enamels used by the medal maker. Often these little silver or gold bands will make their way into the blazon. Let us know if this lines are part of the blazon or the result of the badge manufacturing process.
I’ll have to find that out from the designer, as the only other picture I have of high enough resolution is stylized to the point where it’s difficult to tell whether the silver division is there or not.
