SYMBOLISM OF HERALDIC COLORS, FURS, LINES & ORDINARIES or...

What does it mean if your coat of arms bears a red boar's head?

Please note that the following descriptions and meanings are gleaned from a variety of sources, some of which disagree on those meanings. The most commonly accepted meanings are given, but scholars vary in the their opinions concerning the reliability of any "commonly held" historic meanings for coats of arms and crests.

For examples of the different positions for heraldic animals,
see our "Sample Lions In Heraldry" page.

COLORS

Even the colors can have special meaning in a "family crest" or coat of arms:

Gold (Or)

Generosity and elevation of the mind

Silver or White (Argent)

Peace and sincerity

Red (Gules)

Warrior or martyr; Military strength and magnanimity

Blue (Azure)

Truth and loyalty

Green (Vert)

Hope, joy, and loyalty in love

Black (Sable)

Constancy or grief

Purple (Purpure)

Royal majesty, sovereignty, and justice

Orange (Tawny or Tenne)

Worthy ambition

Maroon (Sanguine or Murray)

Patient in battle, and yet victorious

FURS	*The mere fact that a shield or crest contains furs suggests a mark of dignity. Usually the fur coat of the weasel is represented.*
Ermine	White with black spots.
Erminois	Gold with black spots.
Ermines	Black with white spots.
Pean	Black with gold spots.
Vair	Blue and white bell-shaped objects.

Heraldic Lines and Ordinaries:
Nebuly Line	Clouds or air
Wavy Line	Sea or water
Engrailed Line	Earth or land
Invected Line	Earth or land
Indented Line	Fire
Dancette Line	Water
Raguly Line	Difficulties that have been encountered
Embattled Line	Walls of a fortress or town (also, fire)

The most common heraldic symbols and their meanings as suggested by some historians - images and more information available via links for each item. For a list of symbols and their meanings, without illustrations, visit Meanings: All. For a list of all symbols and their meanings with illustrations (page may take a while to load to your screen), visit Symbolism.

A	B	C
Acacia Branch or Leaves	Baby's Breath	Cactus Flower
Acanthus Leaves	Baguette (gem ring)	Cadences (Marks of Cadency)
Acorn	Banderole	Caduceus
Agricultural Tools (See also Scythe and Sickle)	Banner	Calla Lily
Alisaunder (Similar to Laurel)	Bar, Barry, Barrulet	Caltrap (or Caltrop)
Allerion (Mythical creature, similar to an eagle, but without beak or claws)	Barry Wavy	Camel
Anchor	Bat	Cannon & Cannon Balls
Angelica	Baton	Candle/Lamp
Angels	Battle Axe	Canton
Annulet (finger ring)	Bay Leaves	Cap of Maintenance
Ant	Beacon (Also Lantern or Lighthouse)	Carnation
Antelope	Bear	Carpenter's Square
Antlers	Beaver	Castle (Tower/Chateau)
Anvil	Bee	Cat (Also Wildcat or Lynx)
Apple/ Apple Tree	Beech	Cattails (Bulrushes)
Arm (or Hand) in Armour or Embowed	Bell	Catherine Wheel
Arm, Naked	Bell Tower (or Clock Tower)	Centaur
Arrow or Dart	Bend/Bendy	Cerberus
Aspen Leaves	Berries	Chains
Ass	Bezant/Byzantine Coin (Also Besant; Gold Roundle)	Chamomile
Axe (Also Halbert, Halberd, Hatchet)	Billet/Billettee	Chapeau See also "cap of maintenance")
Azalea	Birch	Chaplet (Floral)
	Bird of Paradise	Chequy
	Birdbolt	Cherry Blossom
	Bishop's Mitre	Cherubs & Cherubim
	Black-Eyed Susan	Chess Rook
	Blasted	Chevron
	Bluebonnet	Chief
	Boar	Chimera
	Boar's Head	Chough (Cornish Crow)
	Bonacon	Chrysanthemum
	Bomb (Mortar Piece)	Church
	Bones (Crossed Thighbones)	Cinquefoils
	Book	Civic Wreath (of oak leaves and acorns)
	Border	Clarion
	Bourdon (See Pilgrim's Staff or Palmer's Stave)	Claw of a Bird
	Bow	Clock Tower
	Bow and Arrow	Clouds
	Braced	Cock (male bird)
	Bracket	Cockatrice (small serpent)
	Bridge	Column
	Broom Plant	Comet
	Buck (See Stag)	Community
	Buckle	Compass
	Buglass (purple quatrefoil)	Compony or Gobony
	Bull/Buffalo	Cornish Chough (crow, raven; See "chough")
	Bull's Head	Cornucopia (horn of plenty)
	Bull's Horns	Cottice/Cotice (bendlet)
	Butterfly	Coupeaux
		Crane (Stork)
		Cramp
		Crescent
		Cresset (See "Beacon")
		Crosier/shepherd's crook
		Cross
		Crossed thighbones (See Bones)
		Crow (See also "Chough")
		Crown or Coronet
		Crown (Mural)
		Crown (Naval)
		Crown of thorns
		Cup (often covered)
		Cushions
		Cygnet (young swan)
		Cypress

D	E	F
Daffodil	Eagle	Falcon (Hawk)
Dagger or dart	Eagle with two heads	Fasces
Dahlia	Edelweiss	Feathers
Daisy	Elephant	Fer de moline (See millrind)
Dawle (black quatrefoil)	Elm	Fern
Decrescent	Enfield	Fess/Fesse
Deer (See also Stag/Hart/Buck)	Ermine Spot	Fetterlock
Dice	Escallop (scallop shell)	Fife
Dill	Escarbuncle	Fig leaf
Dog (See also Talbot)	Escutcheon or small shield, alone, with no charges	Finger, pointing
Dogwood	Escutcheon of Pretence (Small shield in center of primary shield, as shown above.)	Fire/Fire-fighting
Dolphin	Estoile (star with six wavy points)	Fish
Dove	Eye	Flag or Pennant
Dragon		Flanchi/flasque/flanches (Also flaunches)
Drops (Guttees)		Fleece (lamb's)
Drum		Fleur-de-lis
Duck (Also Teal)		Flint stone
		Flowers (See specific flowers)
		Fly (or Gad-fly Gad-bee)
		Fountain
		Fox
		Fraises
		Fret (saltire through a mascle)
		Fruit
		Fusil (narrow lozenge)
		Fusil of Yarn (yarn with the spindle)

G	H	I-J-K
Galley	Hammer	Ichthus (Greek for "Fish")
Gannet (duck without beak or legs)	Hand	Increscent/Increment
Garb (wheatsheaf)	Hand, red	Inescutcheon (See "Escutcheon of Pretence")
Garlic	Hare (see Rabbit)	Infinity Symbol
Gauntlet	Harp	Insignia - Marine Corps
Gavel	Harpy (Virgin's face, neck and breast with the body of a lion)	Insignia - Naval Academy
Gem or Jewel	Hart (male deer) - See Stag/Buck	Ivy Leaves
Geranium	Hawk (Falcon)	Inkhorn or Inkwell
Gillyflower (tawney quatrefoil)	Hawks' lures:	Iris
Ginseng	Hazel branch or leaves
Globe	Head (Human)	Jaguar
Goat	Heart, Flaming	Jasmine
Gobony or Gobbony (See Compony)	Heart, Human	Jessamine (white quatrefoil)
Goose	Hedgehog	Jessant de lis
Gorged (around neck)	Heliotrope
Grape leaves	Helmet
Grapes	Hibiscus
Grasshopper	Hind (female deer)
Grenade	Holly	Keys
Greyhound	Horns	Knight (especially on horseback)
Griffin	Horse (See also Seahorse)
Gyronny	Horseshoe
	Hourglass
	Housemark
	Huitfoil (double quatrefoil)
	Human Head
	Humettee
	Hunting Horn
	Hyacinth
	Hydra (dragon with seven heads)

L	M-N	O-P
Labarum (Constantine's Cross)	Man	Oak Garb or Sheaf
Label	Magnolia	Oak Tree, Leaves, Bush
Ladder (Scaling Ladder)	Maple leaf	Oak Tree/Bush with Acorns
Lamb or Ewe	Marigold	Olive Branch or Leaves
Lamb carrying staff or banner with a cross (paschal lamb)	Martlet (footless swallow)	Orange Blossom
Lamp/Lantern (See also "Candle")	Mascle (hollowed out lozenge)	Orchid
Lance or Javelin	Masonic Square	Orle
Laurel Leaves	Mastiff	Ostrich/Ostrich plumes
Lavender	Matches	Otter
Leg	Maunch (lady's sleeve)	Owl
Lemur	Mermaid	Ox
Leopard or Ounce	Millpick
Leopard's head swallowing a fleur-de-lis (jessant)	Millrind (or millstone)
Letter (i.e., A, B, C)	Mint
Level	Mitre (See Bishop's Mitre for more images)
Lightning Bolt	Mole	Pale/Palet/Pallet/Paly
Lilac	Monkey	Palm Branch
Lily	Moon	Palm Tree
Linden branch or leaves	Moor/Saracen/Turk	Pansy
Lion	Moor fowl or Moor-cock	Panther
Lion, heraldic	Mortar Piece	Papal Headdress
Lotus	Morning Glory	Parchment/Scroll/Diploma
Lozenge or Lozengy	Mount/Mound (See "Coupeaux")	Parrot
Lunel (Four crescent moons facing each other)	Mulberries	Paschal Lamb
Lupine	Mule	Passion Nails
Lure (hawk's)	Mullet (Star)	Pavilion
Lymphad (See also Ship)	Musical Pipes	Peacock
Lyre	Myrtle	Peacock Feather
		Pear
		Pegasus
		Pelican
	Nettle Leaf	Pen
		Pennon or Flag
		Peony
		Periwinkle (blue quatrefoil)
		Petunia
		Pheasant
		Pheon (Spear-head)
		Phoenix
		Pig
		Pike (Fish) (See also Spear)
		Pile
		Pilgrim's Stave/Staff Palmer's Stave/Staff
		Pillar (See Column)
		Pincers
		Pine
		Pine Cone
		Pineapple
		Pipes (See Musical Pipes)
		Pitcher
		Plant
		Plow or Ploughshare
		Plume of feathers
		Plummet
		Poinsettia
		Pomegranate Fruit
		Poplar leaf
		Poppy (sanguine quatrefoil)
		Portcullis (Castle Gate)
		Primrose (Cowslip)
		Proboscides
		Pussy Willow

Q-R	S	T
Quatrefoil (Primrose)	Sabre (See Sword)	Table
	Saddle	Tabor (snare drum)
	Sage	Talbot (hunting dog) (See also Dog)
	Salamander	Tent
Rabbit (Conie)	Salmon (See Fish)	Terrace
Rainbow	Saltire	Thistle
Ram	Savage/Saracen	Thorn Leaf
Raspberries	Scales	Thyme
Rat	Scallop Shell (See Escallop)	Tiger
Ratch-hound (small hound)	Sceptre	Tiger Lily
	Scroll (See Parchment or Diploma)
Raven	Scythe or Sickle	Torch
Ray or Rayonnee	Sea Horse/ Sea Dragon	Tortoise
Rhinoceros	Seal/Sea lion	Tower
Rhododendron	Seaweed	Tree Trunk/Stump/Branch
Rock	Seraphim	Tree
Rose	Serpent/Snake/Lizard	Tree of Life (Knowledge)
Rose, Red	Shacklebolt	Trefoil or Shamrock (three-leaved grass)
Rose, White	Shamrock	Tressure
Rose, Yellow	Shield	Tressure Flory Counterflory
Rosemary	Ship	Trestle
Roundles	Ship, Dismasted	Trident
Rye	Shofar	Trumpet
	Shutle (Weaver's Shuttle)	Tulip
	Skull
	Snail
	Snake (See Serpent)
	Snapdragon
	Spear/Pike
	Spear-head (See Pheon)
	Sphere
	Sphinx
	Spider
	Spur or Spur Rowel
	Square Symbols
	Squirrel
	Stag (Also Reindeer)
	Stag's Antlers
	Star (estoile or mullet)
	Steel
	Stirrup
	Stool
	Stork
	Sun
	Sunflower
	Swallow
	Swan
	Sword/Dagger/Dart Sabre/Cutlass/Scimitar

U-V	W	X-Y-Z
Unicorn	Walnut Leaves	Yew
	Water Lily	Zinnia
	Water Bouget
	Wheat-Ear
Vine	Wheat Garb or Sheaf
Violet	Wheel
Vol (Set of Wings)	Willow (Weeping)
Vulture	Wings (See also "Vol")
	Wisteria
	Wolf
	Woodbine Leaves
	Woman
	Wreath of laurel leaves (and berries)
	Wren
	Wyvern (Dragon with only two legs and armed tail)

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