Alexander, the martlet idea is interesting (if Stephen likes it) however, I think there are too many colors.
http://www.andreou.org/sh03.jpghttp://www.andreou.org/sh04.jpg
I do like the martlets as well. And while I still prefer the Cross Fleury, I even like Xander’s color scheme. I even like the more American color scheme.
Looks like the COA for the College of Arms in England.
Andrew J Vidal;64359 wrote:
Looks like the COA for the College of Arms in England.
Reminiscent certainly, but "like" I think not.
Stephen R. Hickman;64351 wrote:
I’m wanting a design which boldly, yet simply, states that I am a Christian.
In my humble opinion, the cross does not boldly say you are a Christian because the cross-throughout design is in such common heraldic usage. I look at the Norwegian flag and I don’t think "Christian Nation." A short religious motto speaks with greater clarity than the cross throughout.
Though I was thinking a cross enhanced to provide his original idea of a Latin Cross, and then having six rather than four martlets. The only reason I suggested Or over Argent for the interior cross is because as argent, it looks like an odd form of voiding.
xanderliptak;64364 wrote:
The only reason I suggested Or over Argent for the interior cross is because as argent, it looks like an odd form of voiding.
With highlighting and shadows, it wouldn’t look remotely like voiding.
http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/60/hickmanstephen3c2gs0.gif
Ah, but not every emblazon will have that.
Kenneth Mansfield;64365 wrote:
With highlighting and shadows, it wouldn’t look remotely like voiding.
True, but it doesn’t look like voiding anyway, no more than any other charges ‘of the field’ on an ordinary. I think it’s a nice design, although I confess I’ve never heard this symbolism of the martlet before, and I share Michael Swanson’s skepticism that any number of crosses on a coat of arms will necessarily signal "Christian" in anything but a nominal sense.
Perhaps-
Azure, a crown of thorns Or a lily within Argent on a chief Argent a lion passant contourny and a lamb passant Azure.
Perhaps better: reverse all the tinctures above, use a wolf Or and lamb Argent.
Joseph McMillan;64367 wrote:
True, but it doesn’t look like voiding anyway, no more than any other charges ‘of the field’ on an ordinary.
I would agree. I think "voiding" is sufficiently less common that the first response will just look at it as "a charge of the field".
Joseph McMillan;64367 wrote:
I think it’s a nice design, although I confess I’ve never heard this symbolism of the martlet before
New to me, as well. Neither Boutell nor Fox-Davies mention it, although they do confirm the general lack of feet. The suggestion I noted came from it’s use as a mark of difference, in the English system, for a fourth son, who is less likely to inherit "lands" from either father or mother and so may have no place to "put his feet". Pilgrimage and diligence were not noted.
Joseph McMillan;64367 wrote:
, and I share Michael Swanson’s skepticism that any number of crosses on a coat of arms will necessarily signal "Christian" in anything but a nominal sense.
They probably suggest "Christian" to a devout Christian. I see the Cross as an indication that someone in the family, at some point in its history, WAS devout, and wanted to be remembered for it. I do see the crosses in the various arms of the Nordic nations as suggesting they are Christian nations, as compared with, say, Taoist nations. I suppose a Buddhist might see the Cross as something else.
Wow! Such wonderful, colorful, and beautiful suggestions! The idea of an Or cross is a good one, although it would be a third tincture. However, I’m open-minded to it. I also considered the clechy cross, as it is similar to the urdy cross, but it is much more commonly used, the fruery cross even more so. The martlets, respectfully, doesn’t appeal to me at all. The concept of legless birds that cannot land, to me, sounds like a cruel fate for one of God’s creatures, which is not what I would want to have on my shield. I am aware that others obviously have a different opinion on this, and rightly so. However, the mere sight of any legless creature makes me feel very sorry for it. I apologize if I offended anyone.
There are no citations, so who knows where the information came from, but Wikipedia states about the martlet:
Quote:
A martlet is a mythical bird often used in heraldry. A martlet looks similar to the swallow, but has short tufts of feathers in the place of legs. (Swifts have such small legs that they were believed to have none at all.)
The inability of the martlet to land is often seen to symbolize the constant quest for knowledge and learning, as in the arms of University College, Oxford; Worcester College, Oxford; Pembroke College, Cambridge; McGill University; the University of Houston and its Law Center; Westminster School, Simsbury, Connecticut (where the store is called the Martlet’s Nest); and the University of Victoria (where the student newspaper is also called The Martlet).
It has been suggested that this same restlessness is the reason for the use of the martlet in English heraldry as the cadency mark of the fourth son: the first son inherited the estate, the second and third traditionally went into the Church and the Army, and the fourth had no well-defined place. As the fourth son received no part of the family wealth and had to earn his own, the martlet was also a symbol of hard work, perseverance, and a nomadic household.
The cross in my arms represents my Celtic as much as my Christian heritage. I, myself, am a Deist.
Stephen R. Hickman;64384 wrote:
Wow! Such wonderful, colorful, and beautiful suggestions! The idea of an Or cross is a good one, although it would be a third tincture. However, I’m open-minded to it. I also considered the clechy cross, as it is similar to the urdy cross, but it is much more commonly used, the fruery cross even more so. The martlets, respectfully, doesn’t appeal to me at all. The concept of legless birds that cannot land, to me, sounds like a cruel fate for one of God’s creatures, which is not what I would want to have on my shield. I am aware that others obviously have a different opinion on this, and rightly so. However, the mere sight of any legless creature makes me feel very sorry for it. I apologize if I offended anyone.
I think you’d be hard-pressed to offend any of us in this thread, Stephen. It’s about your arms after all.
The non-historical attributed arms of Saint Edward the Confessor (c. 1003 – 5 January 1066) are Azure, a cross patonce between five martlets Or. These arms were also used by Richard II of England who impaled them on the dexter with France Ancient quartered with England on the sinister.
