Heraldry: Customs Rules Style

by Carl-Alexander Von Volborth

A study of the complex rules and customs governing the international subject of heraldry. He discusses the differences in heraldic style between the countries in Europe, and also shows how these differences affect those countries where heraldry has been introduced by migrating or colonizing Europeans.
Heavily illustrated

Genres: History, Art, Medieval History

234 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1981

Reviews

[Michael Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This unprepossessing volume includes a few glossy color plates, but it is constructed primarily around 1,200+ black-and-white renderings of arms, accompanied by a cogent descriptive and explanatory text. The chapters walk the reader through the major elements of a blazon: The shield itself and its divisions and partitions, the charges, the helm and mantling, the crest and supporters, the various systems of differencing and cadency, and the marshalling of arms. But the author, a German-born artist of American citizenship living in Antwerp, has published a number of heraldic works in German, Dutch, and Danish, as well as English, and his interest in Continental armory continues here, with discussions of burgher-arms, both the titled and untitled nobility of numerous European countries, and the religious orders of chivalry in Malta, Switzerland, and the Netherlands. Since most works on the subject in English show little interest in heraldry outside the British Isles, that inclusion alone makes this an important reference tool. But the author also points out the family relationships displayed in the similar arms of families with a joint history, the similarities between many municipal and regional arms based on historical parallels, and even the peculiarities of practice in the way helms are traditionally rendered in different countries. Much incidental information on both British and Continental families also appears. For instance, the arms of the noble Pacchioni family of Bologna includes a modified version of the chief in the Angevin arms because the armiger was a supporter of the King of Naples and Sicily. And the arms of Edward Irving of Kirkintilloch include a brisure of a second son of a third son of a second son. An excellent tool for both the genealogist and the heraldic artist.