The Manual of Heraldry by Sir Francis J. Grant – 19.95This is a pocket-size book of reference which fully encompasses the entire range of heraldry. In addition to the outstanding dictionary of terms, it contains chapters on the origin of coat armor, the right to bear arms, differencing and marshalling of arms, and the order of precedence, the whole copiously illustrated with 350 text figures.
This manual will be of service to the student as well as the general reader who desires to acquire some knowledge of the subject which has been justly called "the shorthand of history."
142 pages | Published 1914, reprinted 1997| Printed Edition
Fairbairn's Book of Crests of the Families of Great Britain and Ireland, 2 volumes – 99.95Crests are the ornaments and devices attached to a helmet or coronet and pictured in a coat of arms. They are as distinctive to the bearer of arms as the shield itself and are generally representative of the person originally granted the arms. Throughout the centuries crests have evolved as an important element in heraldic art and are referred to today as a means of identifying families associated with their use, much as the shield itself is.
This present work is a register of all crests known to have been in use in Great Britain and Ireland. Long established as the definitive work in its field, it has passed through a number of editions since it first appeared in 1859. The edition offered here is a reprint of the fourth edition of 1905, the best and most complete edition ever published, used for years as a work of reference by genealogists, artists, engravers, and jewellers.
The main part of this encyclopedic work is an alphabetical list of about 50,000 names associated with various crests, with a full description of each crest and a reference to the plate in which it is illustrated. Following this is a section containing a list of 5,000 mottoes and the names of the families using them.
The illustrated portion of the book–its chief feature–consists of 314 full-page plates with beautiful engravings of about 5,000 crests. Beautifully executed, these illustrations form a timeless archive of family memorabilia. There is also a key to the plates, which cross-indexes the names of the families assigned to each crest, as well as a dictionary of terms which serves as a glossary.
2 vols, xiv, 612 & 148, 314 pp. | Published 1905, reprinted 2008 | Printed Edition
Heraldic Design: A Handbook for Students by Heather Child – 28.00This is a skillfully written book that describes the basic rules and grammar of heraldry observed in designing a heraldic device. As it is quite impossible for the genealogist to interpret a blazon or to design a coat of arms without full mastery of heraldic rules and grammar, this book provides all the information necessary for the prosecution of either task.
Carefully explaining the unique rules and language of heraldry, and illustrating each point with a remarkable series of pen drawings, the book aims to give the genealogist and the student of design sufficient information about the structure and detail of heraldic insignia to enable him to produce well-balanced designs of coats of arms.
In addition to its usefulness as a manual, this is the kind of book that many will enjoy for the color and romance of heraldic history; e.g., the stories behind the great symbols of chivalry and the explanation of the uses of heraldry in architecture and other forms of embellishment. It is an unquestionable necessity for anyone forming a heraldic library.
"Without a doubt this is the finest book to have been published for many years, and one which will become the vade mecum of anyone in any way connected with heraldry in its various forms." Museum News (Sept. 1967).
180 pages | Published 1966, reprinted 2008 | Printed Edition
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A Genealogist's Guide to Heraldry by Shannon Combs-Bennett
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