Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 09.djvu/859

* HERALDKY. T'.)3 HEBALDRY. saders, which are five golden crosses on a silver field. A recognized exception exists wherever a charge lies over a field partly of metal and partly of color, or where an animal is attired, armed, ungiiled, crowned, or chained with a tincture dif- ferent from that of his hody. Marks of cadency, chiefs, cantons, and bordures are also occasional- l}' exempted from the general rule, being, accord- ing to some heralds, not laid on the shield, but coiisu, or sewed to it. CiiARiiES. Everything contained in the field of an escutcheon is called a charge. Charges are divided by heralds into the three classes of honorable ordinaries, subordinaries, and com- mon charges. Under the name of ordinaries or honorable ordinaries are included certain old and very frequent bearings, whose true peculiarity seems to be that, instead of being taken from extraneous objects, they are rejiresentatives of the wooden or metal strengthenings of the ancient shields. Nine are recognized by the best usage. See Plate, Ordinarie-s and Subordinaries. (1) The chief (Fig. 1) is the upper part of the shield separated from the rest by a line, and com- prising, according to the requirements of her- alds, one-third of the whole, though this pro- portion is seldom rigidly adhered to. Its diminu- tive is the fillet (Fig. 3), supposed to take up one-fourth the space of a chief, in whose lowest part it stands. The line at the base of the chief may be straight, indented, or irregular. (2) The pale (Fig. 4) is a band or stripe from top to bottom, said, like the chief, to occupy one- third of the shield. It has two diminutives, the pallet, one-half the breadth of the pale (Fig. 5), and the endorse, one-half of the pallet (Fig. 6). (3) The bend (Fig. 8) is a band crossing the shield diagonally from de.xter chief to sinister base. Its diminutives are the bendlet or garter, one-half of its breadth (Fig. 9), the cost, or cotise, one-half of the bendlet (Fig. 10), and the riband, one-half of the cotise. The bend is some- times borne between two cotises, in which case it is said to be cotised (Fig. II), a term sometimes applied to the other ordinaries when accom- panied with their diminutives. The bend sinister (Fig. 12) is a diagonal band from sinister chief to dexter base. Its diminu- tives are the scarp, one-half of the bend sinister (Fig. 13), and the baton, one-half of the scarp (Fig. 14). The baton stops short of the ex- tremity of the field at both ends, and has been considered a mark of illegitimacy. (4) The fess or fesse (Fig. 1.5) is a horizontal band in the middle of the shield, said, like the ordinaries already enumerated, to occupy one- third of it. The lines which bound it may be straight or irregular (Fig. 10). (5j The bar is similar in form to the fess, but narrower and never placed in the centre of the shield (Fig. 17). It is rarely used singly. When in pairs they are called bars riemeUes. The diminutives are the closet, theoretically half the width of the bar (Fig. 19). and the barrulct, half the width of the closet (Fig. 18). But these terms are seldom used. (C) The cherron (Fig. 20) is composed of two stripes forming an inverted V. Its diminutives are the cherronel (Fig. 21) of half, and the couple- close (Fig. 23) one-fourth its width. (7) The cross (Fig. 24) unites the pale and fess, an ordinary which was originally, like the rest, composed of the clamps necessary to the strength of the shield, but had also the deeper meaning of the symbol of the Christian faith, iiesides its plain form, the cross was varied in numerous ways, most of these varieties being, however, rather common charges than ordinaries. Of the 39 lesser crosses mentioned by Guillim, or the 385 by Berry in the IJnciicluixrdia llernldicu, a few of the most frequently occurring arc the following: The cross moline (Fig. 20), with the ends turned round bol h wa.ys ; the cross fleury (Fig. 27), of which each limb terminates in a lleur-de-lis; the cross patonce (Fig. 28), the limb of which has three points; the cross potent (Fig. 29), crutch-shaped at the ends; the cross palic (Fig. 30), small in the centre, but widen- ing toward the ends; and the cross crosslct (Fig. 31), crossed at the ends. The latter is the most frequent of all, and is borne oftener in numbers than singly. Any of these crosses is said to be fitchy when the lower limb terminates in a sharp point, as in Fig. 30. There is also the erossi Maltese; though not frequent as a heraldic charge, it derives an importance from being the badge of the Knights of Malta, and of many other orders (Fig. 32). (8) The saltire, or Saint Andrew's cross (Fig. 57), is formed by a junction of the bend dexter and bend sinister. (9) The pile (Fig. 59) is a wedge with the point downward. A single imcharged pile should, at its upper part, occupy one-third the breadth of the shield, but if charged, it may be double that width. It is used ordinarily either singly or in threes (Fig. 60). The quarter, consisting of the upper right-hand fourth part of the shield cut off by a horizontal and a perpendicular line, is classed by some au- thorities with the honorable ordinaries, but it is more common to consider it one of the subordi- naries (see below). It is frequently termed a canton (Fig. 61 ) . > / PERPAUS PER BEND PER KE5S PERCHEVRDM PER SALTIRE PER CROSS BARRY PALY PARTITIONS. BENDY It has been observed that the field of an escutcheon may be of two different tinctures, divided by a partition-line which may vary in direction. (See illustnitiiin I'arlitions.) When divided l)y a ]iartitinn-line in the diro'ction of one of the ordinaries, the shield is said to be party