James I of Aragon

King of Aragon, Valencia and Majorca, Count of Barcelona, Count of Urgell, Lord of Montpellier and known as the Conqueror

Or, four pallets Gules.

Escudo de oro, cuatro palos de gules.

Coat of arms interpreted by me as follows: the escutcheon shape is semicircular; the field is rendered in flat Or with a watercolored effect; and the pallets are illuminated and finished with a crystalline texture.

A semicircular-shaped shield of Aragon can be seen, for instance, in [Argote de Molina, G.; 1588; chapter XLII].

This shield, but with a pointed base, appears in the second part of the armorial [Wijnbergen; 1265; shield no. 1,293], under the title «Le roy Darragon». This second part was compiled between 1270 and 1285 and, since James I was king of Aragon from 1213 to 1276, it could refer to him; although it might also refer to his son Peter III, the Great, who succeeded James I in 1276.

This coat of arms is also the arms of Aix-en-Provence, granted to that French city, according to tradition, by Alfonso II of Aragon [Aix-en-Provence; 1351], grandfather of James I, the Conqueror.

Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Or, Four, Pale and Gules.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Watercolor and Crystalline.

Classification: Interpreted, Personal, Coat of arms and Kingdom of Aragon.

Bearer: James I of Aragon.

Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Barcelona

Or, four pallets Gules.

Escudo de oro, cuatro palos de gules.

Coat of arms of the Count of Barcelona interpreted by me with the following features: the escutcheon shape is semicircular; the field is rendered in flat Or; the pallets are illuminated; and the whole has been given a heavily beaten metal finish.

[Menéndez Pidal de Navascués, F.; 1988; page 537] tells us that, unlike other more territorial emblems, «from his earliest seal the pallets appear on the shield of the equestrian figures on both sides, and in line with this configuration the emblem is inherited, without distinction, by his three sons and all his grandsons... it seems one must conclude that the emblem had a familial, not territorial, character from the very beginning».

Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Or, Four, Pale and Gules.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated and Hard metal.

Classification: Interpreted, Personal, Coat of arms and County of Barcelona.

Bearer: Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Barcelona.

Aragon

Or, four pallets Gules.

Escudo de oro, cuatro palos de gules.

Recreated coat of arms of Aragón in the following manner: the escutcheon shape is pointed and rounded; the field is rendered in flat Or; the pallets are illuminated; and the whole has a parchment-like finish.

This rendition of the coat of arms is based on [Portolés, J.; Molino, M. del; 1590].

Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Or, Four, Pale and Gules.

Style keywords: Pointed and rounded, Illuminated and Parchment.

Classification: Interpreted, Civic, Coat of arms and Kingdom of Aragon.

Bearer: Aragon.

Unicornio saltante sobre la divisa, criterio.

Chequey, chequy or checky

Chequey.

Chequey Or and Gules.

Escudo ajedrezado de oro y gules.

I have encountered several ways of writing the term «chequey» in English, such as «chequy», removing one «e», or «checky», and even other variants like «checkered», «checkie», «chequered», «cheque», «cheques» or «checquy».

[The Heraldry Society; 2013; pages 8 and 11] uses the term «chequey», and that is the one I strive to use.

Categories: Criterion, Tiled, Plain tincture, Hard metal, Chequey, Or and Gules.

Urgell, County of

Chequey Or and Sable.

Escudo ajedrezado de oro y sable.

Arms interpreted with: a round-topped shield shape; the chequey pattern in flat metal Or and colour Sable; and a heavily beaten metal finish.

[Avilés, J.; 1780a; page 33] writes about the application of the chequey pattern to shields, ordinaries and charges: «chequey is said of the shield, the principal ordinaries, and even some animals, such as eagles, lions, and other charges, when they are composed of alternating square pieces in the fashion of a chessboard.» On the minimum number of panes he generally specifies that «for a shield to be called chequey, it must have at least twenty chessboard panes; because if it has only nine, it is called equipoll; and if it has fifteen, it is said to be of fifteen panes of chequey» and for its application to ordinaries that «other ordinaries, such as bends, fesses, etc., must have at least two rows of chequey to be considered chequey, otherwise they would be called compony.»

Blazon keywords: Chequey, Or and Sable.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Plain tincture and Hard metal.

Classification: Interpreted, Civic, Coat of arms and Kingdom of Aragon.

Bearer: Urgell, County of.

Ponce I of Urgell

Count of Urgell, Viscount of Àger, deceased in 1243.

Chequey Or and Sable.

Escudo ajedrezado de oro y sable.

Arms interpreted with: a shield shaped as a triangle with curved sides; the chequey pattern in flat metal Or and colour Sable; and a heavily beaten metal finish.

[Avilés, J.; 1780a; page 286] states that he will call «Chequey those ordinaries composed of these small squares, which alternate between metal and colour, or vice versa, just like the boards of those Games.» and he also writes regarding the usual number of panes that «it must have six ranks or rows of these squares, though it is not necessary to specify their number, or at least the shield must include more than fifteen panes; it is only required, to properly blazon it, to always observe the first square, which is in the chief dexter; so that, if this is Or, and the one that follows is Gules, it is said to be Chequey Or and Gules, and so with other colours and metals.»

Although Ponce initially proclaimed himself count of the county of Urgell without sufficient rights, the death of the legitimate heiress and his agreements and assistance to king James I of Aragon enabled him to legalise his title. During this process, the capital of the county ceased to be the municipality of Balaguer only to eventually become it once again.

Blazon keywords: Chequey, Or and Sable.

Style keywords: Triangular curved, Plain tincture and Hard metal.

Classification: Interpreted, Personal, Coat of arms and Kingdom of Aragon.

Bearer: Ponce I of Urgell.