Have you ever wondered why we (our countries) still use heraldic signs (coats of arms)?

[Claus]

First of all I wish you all a great day!

Now to my question, maybe it is ridiculous, but this one comes back to me every now and than, and maybe this signs are a sign for us, to show that even if a country do not have monarchy anymore, they still use the coats of arms they had in that time.
So I pondered about that. Is it because it was convenient, or should there be a hidden message?
It also could be because of "posing" (I don't know if it is the correct word for it, but show of isn't the right therm either.)
But it also could be a sign (for something that we allready know), the true form of government has never been changed, and monarchy was not the true form of government either.

What do you think about that? Is it a thing to go after, or is it ridiculous?

 

[whitecoast]

Thanks for starting this topic. It looks like wikipedia has some good info on coats of arms and more broadly heraldry. It seems like this could be seen as the early modern age forerunner to our modern concept of people or virtual persons (corporations, nations, etc) having a Brand; this has roots going back to antiquity, but received a major revival after the political and technological landscape began to change. These were used by heralds/messengers of nobles, kings, and so on, and was used as a proof of genealogy (almost like a copyright). It seems anlso like it was used as a precursor to the (relatively more modern) concept of a uniform to distinguish which side you were on in a battle.

Heraldry - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Coat of arms - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Officer of arms - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Herald - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

My own family was actually gifted a coat of arms by the city state they lived in a number of centuries ago for outstanding service. I guess it was almost like a vanity plate, or getting to out your name on a building for significant contributions. It seemed to put a real feather in one’s cap.

 

[loreta]

The coat of arms of the country where I live is very, very beautiful. I love it. Look why. You can see the seven islands and the two dogs.

 

[mimimari]

This is an interesting question. I do not see coat of arms around much where I am at. I will have to look around for them.
Lol, would it be cool to have a coat of arms for SOTT and/or FOTCM?

 

[loreta]

This is an interesting question. I do not see coat of arms around much where I am at. I will have to look around for them.
Lol, would it be cool to have a coat of arms for SOTT and/or FOTCM?

This is an excellent proposition. And we can put the coat of arms on our clothes, our coats and jumpers.

 

[Potatoes and Tomatoes]

Last year, I painted a very large metal sign with the coat of arms for a local Manor house. It was double sided, quite a challenge but a wonderful experience. I love the delving into history and dissecting the information held there, remembering that in ages past where literacy was low in the population, symbology, colour and placement was everything.