Page:Architectural Review and American Builders' Journal, Volume 1, 1869.djvu/506

 412 Sloan s Architectural Review and Builders' Journal. [Dec, series of continued semi-circles, of the same radius, struck from different cen- tres, and alternate^ touching the top and bottom of any particular row. Menu-Vair, Meniver, or Minever — from the French menu, small, and vair, the proper name of this fur, has the smallest figures, consisting of five or six rows. This is also termed small vair. In Scott's ballad of the " Noble Mor- ringer," a knightly tale of old Bohemian day, we are informed : "It was the noble Moringer, from bed be made him bouae, And met him there his chamberlain, with ewer and with gown, lie flunL' the mantle on his back, 'twas furred with miniver, He dipped his hand in water cold, and bathed his fore- head fair." The rhyme here shows Sir Walter's pronunciation to have been most likely technical, i. e., mini- vair, as he was a good herald. With regard to the original of Vair in arms, it seems, from Colombiere, that a lord of the ancient and illustrious house of Coucy, in Picardy, France — taking part in the interminable wars, against the Moslem power, in the Ban- nat, Transj'lvfbma, and the other border lands of Christendom — once, finding his troops thrown into disorder, by the Turks, and his banner beaten down, cut out of his scarlet cloak, which was lined with Vair, an extempore banner ; fas- tened it to his spear, and, uplifting it, rallied his troops ; inspire them with his own indomitable spirit, and gained the day. After this, the Herald of Hun- gary blazoned this Coucy's arms as Fasce Vair and Oules of six pieces, on account of the lining and color of his very serviceable cloak ; and, disusing those he had previously borne, the Seig- neur de Coucy left these arms to his posterity. Mackenzy says, Vair has its name from the Fur of a beast called Varus, whose back is a blue-gray, its belly being white; and therefore the heralds have expressed it blue and white in colors. Guillim remarks, "If you observe the " proportion of this Vaire, you shall " easily discern the very shape of the "case or skin of little beasts in them," [i. e., in the pieces.] Coates glosses this, with reference to Guillim, by ob- serving, that, " The head and feet of the beast are taken [cut] from the skin." Of Vair is sometimes formed a cross, which Bara blazons, Croix de quatre pieces.de Vaire appoirdes, that is, A cross of four pieces of Vair, pointing to one another. Gibbon Latinizes it thus : Grucem e quatuor Petasis (quorum apices sunt alia versus aliam positse) consisten- tum; or, again, Quatuor petasos (vertici- bus altero alterum respicientibus) in crucis modum collocatos. Leigh has a great deal concerning Vair, which other Heralds do not admit. Counter- Vair — has figures shaped and arranged exactly as in Vair, but the} r are colored in alternate per- pendicular rows, so that if the White shieldlets range, from chief to base, upright, i n v e r t e d, u p- right, inverted, upright &c, all touching one another, the Blue shieldlets next adjoining, either right or left, would run, from head to foot, inverted, upright, inverted, &c. Vair-in-Point — displays compo- nent shapes like those of the two preceding ; but the second, fourth and sixth rows are slipped the width of one shieldlet, either to the right, or left, both amounting to the same thing. Counting perpendicularly in rows, to- wards the right, (heraldic left,) this