Cod

Cod

Cod. The representations of different varieties of fish are not always to be distinguished, though the names are so in the blazon. The Cod, the Hake, the Ling, and the Whiting(all belonging to the family of Gadidœ“), are found on various coats of arms. The Hake is rather more slender, and comparatively larger about the head, than the cod, but otherwise the drawing does not distinguish the several kinds. Indeed the drawing of fish in heraldry is very arbitrary, and it will be observed it is mostly in punning arms that fish occur.

Sable, a chevron between three codfishes naiant argent--CODD.

Azure, three codfishes naiant in pale argent--BECK.

Azure, three hake fishes hauriant argent--HAKE.

Argent, on a bend sable, three whitings proper--WHITING.

Azure, three whitings hauriant argent--WHITTINGTON.

Argent, on a fesse dancetty azure, three ling's heads erased or--CALDWELL, Staffordshire.

On a fesse wavy between three dolphins embowed, three hakes naiant with a coronet over each--Mayor's Seal, town of WEXFORD.

Gules, three hakes hauriant argent--HAKEHED, Ireland.

Azure, three hakes hauriant argent--HACKET.

Vert, three hakes hauriant argent--DONEY. [Blazoned sometimes as breams.]

The haddock(which is grouped by naturalists under the same division) does not occur in any coat of arms, but the crest of the family of HADDOCK, Lancashire, is--

A dexter hand holding a haddock.

A species of ling is called sometimes the burbot, but it lives in fresh water; and this is also called the coney fish, and supposed to be allusive in the following arms.

Argent, on a chevron azure, a coney courant between two burbot or coney fish hauriant of the field. On a chief chequy argent and azure a rose gules--Richard CHEYNEY, Bp. of Gloucester, 1562-79.