Annual Heraldry Ireland Lecture by Martin Goldstraw

As the Honorary Herald of the Genealogical Society of Ireland, I have cohosted alongside Laura Price, MGSI, the Annual Heraldry Ireland Lecture by Martin S. J. Goldstraw, director of The Armorial Register.

Introduction to the speaker and his lecture

Welcome to the Genealogical Society of Ireland's Annual Heraldry Ireland Lecture, «Do It Yourself Heraldry - The Design, Assumption, and Registration of Armorial Bearings» presented by Mr. Martin Goldstraw of the Armorial Register.

In many countries around the world, such as Ireland, the United States, Italy, and Spain, citizens are free to assume their own coat of arms. There are usually few restrictions on assuming a coat of arms, for example, the design must follow the rules of heraldry, one cannot copy another person's coat of arms, or it cannot contain illegal symbols in that country.

Thanks to this, we can all have our own coat of arms, allowing us to use the symbolic and communicative power of heraldry to identify and empower ourselves. In this way, many people around the world, of all ages and backgrounds, assume their coat of arms, and this is happening with a growing trend due to the spread of heraldry through the internet and social networks.

The heraldry, which has distilled a written and artistic language over centuries that allows us to project our identity with prestige, clarity, universality, and permanence, reaches us in this third millennium full of strength and freshness, and, therefore, the assumption of a coat of arms uses to be a source of joy for individuals and their families.

Today, on May 9^th, we celebrate Peace and Unity Day in Europe, and we have chosen this day because heraldry is a common heritage of all Europeans, which we have taken with us around the world and that especially unites us. This is because there is more visual and spoken proximity between the painted and written blazons of European countries than between their own languages, such as French, English, Spanish, Italian... for example, notice the closeness between «d'or, au lion rampant de gueules», «Or, a lion rampant Gules», «de oro, un león rampante de gules», «d'oro, al leone rampante di rosso»,... and we will all see the same: a red lion, rising and roaring on a golden field.

And now, without further ado, let us introduce our magnificent guest for this very special day: Mr. Martin Goldstraw is the author and illustrator of the Cheshire Heraldry website and the books Cheshire Heraldry, The Visitations of 1533 to 1580. He is also one of the two Directors and a founder of the publishing company The Armorial Register Ltd. And his lectures are engaging and highly informative.

Registered by The International Register of Arms, 19^th April 2023, Registration number 0671, Volume 4.

---

Category: Armorial roll.

External link:

• Margaret Byrne at The Armorial Register.

Root: The Armorial Register.

Party per pale Sable and Or, two griffins' heads eraticted, and addorsed counterchanged.

Escudo partido de sable y oro, dos cabezas de grifo arrancadas y adosadas del uno en el otro.

Coat of arms emblazoned by me with a semi-circular shape, illuminated, and with a freehand finishing.

---

Blazon keywords: Party per pale, Sable, Or, Two, Head, Griffin, Erased, Addorsed and Counterchanged (side-by-side).

Style keywords: Outlined in sable, Semi-circular, Illuminated and Freehand.

Classification: Socioeconomic, Created and Coat of arms.

Bearer: Alea Capital.

Barry of ten Argent and Azure, overall a double-headed eagle displayed Sable, nimbed, beaked, and membered Or, grasping in each claw an elephant's tusk proper, and charged on its breast with a double vajra Argent.

Escudo fajado de diez piezas de plata y azur, brochante sobre el todo un águila bicéfala de Sable, nimbada, picada y membrada de oro, teniendo en cada garra un colmillo de elefante al natural y su pecho cargado de una vajra doble.

Coat of arms interpreted and emblazoned by me with different shapes and finishings.

---

---

Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Barry, Ten, Argent, Azure, Overall, One, Eagle, Double headed, Sable, Nimbed, Beaked, Membered, Or, Grasping, Claw, Tusk, Elephant, Proper, Chest, Charged and Double vajra.

Style keywords: Outlined in sable, Illuminated, Freehand, Rough, Rounded, Ogee and Pointed.

Classification: Interpreted and Coat of arms.

Bearer: Rage from Discord.

Azure, two arrows in saltire points upward, the arrow bendwise Or, the arrow bend sinisterwise Argent, overall a double vajra per saltire Or and Argent charged with a bezant per saltire curved Or and Argent.

Escudo de azur, dos flechas alzadas en sotuer, la flecha puesta en banda de oro, la flecha puesta en barra de plata, brochante sobre el todo una vajra doble cuartelada en sotuer de oro y plata cargada de un bezante cuartelado en sotuer curvilíneo de oro y plata.

Coat of arms interpreted and emblazoned by me with different shapes and a freehand finishing.

---

---

Blazon keywords: Azure, Two, Arrow, Point upwards, In saltire, Bendwise, Or, Bend sinisterwise, Argent, Overall, One, Double vajra, Quarterly per saltire, Charged, Bezant and plate and Curved.

Style keywords: Outlined in sable, Illuminated, Freehand, Rounded, Ogee and Pointed.

Classification: Interpreted and Coat of arms.

Bearer: Rage from Discord.

Blazon of the Vilardi lineage of Italy.

Argent, on a pile issuant from the base Azure a saltire Or.

Escudo de plata, una pira de azur cargada de un sotuer de oro.

Illuminated and a free hand finishing.

[Cadenas y Vicent, V. de; 2002; page 138] says that the a pile issuant from the base is «a triangle whose base issues from the base of the shield, being a third of its width», but when it is painted in [Cadenas y Vicent, V. de; 2002; page 268, figure 279] along with the pile the width of the base of both isosceles triangles is 2/3 of the width of the shield. I think the width of 2/3 is, in these 2 cases, better than 1/3 width, because with 1/3 there is not enough room for charges, as shown in the figure below.

There are scholars who say that the pile issuant from the base must not touch the upper edge of the shield and others that its tip should be in the center of the chief. In the previous image, the pile issuant from the base of the 1^st shield fulfills the first affirmation, and in the 2^nd shield, its tip is in the center of the chief.

I have the doubt if it should not be a saltire raguly.

---

Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Argent, One, Pile issuant from base, Azure, Charged, Saltire and Or.

Style keywords: Freehand, Outlined in sable, Illuminated and Semi-circular.

Classification: Interpreted, Lineage and Italian Republic.

Party per pale: 1 Azure, an angel Argent, crowned, crined and vested Or holding an open book Argent; 2 Or, three horses' heads couped, in pale Sable. Crest: Upon a wreath Or and Azur, an owl's head couped at the shoulders Or, beaked Argent.

Escudo partido: 1^o de azur, un ángel de plata, coronado, cabellado y vestido de oro cargado con un libro de plata abierto; 2^o de oro, tres cabezas de caballo cortadas, en palo de sable. Timbrado de un burelete de oro y azur cimado de un búho naciente de oro, picado de plata.

Freehand finish.

---

Blazon keywords: Party per pale, Azure, One, Angel, Argent, Crowned, Crown, Crined, Vested, Or, Charged, Book, Open, Three, Head, Horse, Sable, Couped, In pale, Crest and mantling, Wreath, Owl, Nascent and Beaked.

Style keywords: Watercolor, Illuminated, Rounded, Outlined in the field tincture and Outlined in sable.

Classification: Created and Socioeconomic.

Bearer: Club Ecuestre Val'Quirico.

Sigue por: Menéndez Pidal de Navascués, F.; 2014a.