Beasts

Beasts

Beasts, (fr. animaux): the ordinary beasts of the field, with others included under Mammalia, add considerably to the charges of Coats of Arms, as will be seen by the printed Synopsis. A general classification is given there, as a minute and accurate classification would be out of place. It will be found that there are between eighty and ninety varieties to be more or less distinguished both in the drawing and in the blazoning amongst modern coats of arms, but in the earlier arms there were few varieties. If, for instance, we take the wellknown roll of arms, temp. Henry III., containing over 200 arms, we find forty instance of the lion(including the leopard), and some few lioncels(as the lions are termed when there are several, or when they have to be drawn on a small scale); but beyond this, if we except an instance of boars' heads(borne by Adam de SWYNEBOURNE), no other beast in represented. And when we take the roll of the siege of Carlaverock, temp. Edw. I., containing over 100 coats of arms, and a fine roll, temp. Edw. II., containing over 1,000 coats, and a third roll, temp. Edw. III., containing over 600, the sun total of the mammals to be added to the above list amounts only to six, namely, the bear, the greyhound, and the dolphin, and the heads of goats, stags, and wolves. In time, however, the tiger and the panther(with the lynx and ounce) were added to the lion tribe, as also the cat. Besides the greyhound, other dogs were chosen, viz. the bloodhound, mastiff, spaniel, and the 'alant' and 'talbot.' The stag, too, was no longer represented by only one variety, and only one name, for we find the buck, the doe, the roebuck, the hart, the hind, and the reindeer; while the boar is known as sanglier, grice, and marcassin. On account of the fur the weasel was prized, and this, with the ermine, the foine, and the marten, as well as the civet(or civet-cat), appear on the arms. For the skin, too, the otter and the beaver, and for its quills the porcupine, seem to have been sought after, and to have been selected for charges on arms. From the north, the polar bear and the seal, the whale and the dolphin; while from other parts, the elephant, the rhinoceros, the buffalo, the camel, the antelope, and the ibex, provided subjects for the arms. At home, the goat and the sheep(the latter with the varieties of the lamb, the ram, and the toison, or fleece), the bull(with the varieties of ox, cow, and calf), the horse, the badger, and the fox were also added to the list. Nor were lesser animals overlooked, e.g. the hare and the rabbit, the squirrel, the hedgehog, the mole, and the rat, and lastly, the reremouse, or bat.