Arms of the Cardinal-Bishop of Frascati, Henry Benedict Stuart (+1807) as Duke of York. After the death of his brother Charles he was known as Henry IX of England and Ireland and I of Scotland by the Jacobites.

Mr. Foppoli’s first contact with heraldry was when family told him, at age five, about his own coat of arms as a member of the Foppoli family; a golden lion with a red tail holding a hat in its forepaws.

The arms of the Knight Grand Cross of Justice of the Order of Malta, Fra' Gherardo Hercolani Fava Simonetti.

As an adult still interested in heraldry Mr. Foppoli focused his career on graphical art, was educated at an art university and worked with an advertising agency. He initially took a few heraldic free lance commissions but his interest in heraldry grew more and more resulting in even more commissions – and that’s when he found himself working full time as an heraldic artist (although Mr. Foppoli’s wife usually points out that it is more of an hobby than a full time job…) that among other things led to his knighthood (Knight Jure Sanguinis) in the Constantinian Order of St. George as well as memberships in the very highly regarded Academie Internationale d’Heraldique (academician) and Schweizerische Heraldische Gesellschaft (beisitzer).

Arms of a German Knight Commander of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.

Mr. Foppoli’s country of employment – Italy – might be one of the most interesting countries when it comes to heraldry and its various and many artistic approaches. Italy has always been a very regionalised country, and not least when it comes to heraldic art and style. Piedmont (north-west) has always been strongly influenced by the French style and the energetic Lombardic (central north) style was very much affected by Visconti, Sforza and the Spaniards that also made an impression on the Neapolitan (south and south-east) heraldry. The Alpi region of Italy has off course been much influenced by the German and Central European styles. Only in the Venetian Republic, Tuscany and the Vatican has the style been allowed to develop freely and independently in terms of figures and shield shapes.

Ex Libris of Mr. Audun Lem, a Norwegian, featuring Saint Olaf.

If anything Mr. Foppoli must be said to find his influence in the Gothic style, especially in the Trivulzian armorial and the collection of arms in Palazzo del Bargello in Florence as well as the style found in the Italian alps. As a Swede myself I am very happy to hear Mr. Foppoli also praise Scandinavian heraldry as a clean and unconventional style.

A page from Mr. Foppoli's private armorial Liber Amicorum ("coats of arms of friends") featuring the arms of Dr. Günther Mattern AIH, senior member of the Swiss heraldic council.

A part from the artistics of heraldry, Mr. Foppoli is also interested in heraldry as an historical phenomenon.

I strongly recommend a visit to Marco Foppoli’s homepage found here!

The author's version of the Foppoli arms - the shield will be completed with a crest coronet of an untitled noble.

Text and pictures published with the consent of Mr. Foppoli.

The Armorial Blog logo - a quill pen drawing a sixteenth century shield with lance-rest.

From Deutsches Bundesarchiv. von Hindenburg wearing the uniform of a Generalfeldmarschall and the Prussian Pour le Mérite, Iron Cross and Order of the Black Eagle.

Arms of Paul von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg. Prussian field marshal and President of Germany. Originates from an old Junker family.

Seals were historically most often impressed in sealing wax (often simply described as “wax”): in the Middle Ages, this generally comprised a compound of about two-thirds beeswax to one-third of some kind of resin.

Wax seals were being used on a fairly regular basis by most western royal chanceries by about the end of the 10th century. In England, few wax seals have survived of earlier date than the Norman Conquest, although some earlier matrices (the device for making a seal) are known, recovered from archaeological contexts: the earliest is a gold double-sided matrix found near Postwick, Norfolk, and dated to the late 7th century.

Signet ring and seal from Dexter with the tinctures of the shield made hatched (vertical lines for azure).

Seals are used to primarily to authenticate documents. There are two main ways in which a seal may be attached to a document. It may be applied directly to the face of the paper or parchment (an applied seal); or it may hang loose from it (a pendent seal). A pendent seal may be attached to the document by cords or ribbons (sometimes in the owner’s livery colours); by a strip (or tag) of parchment threaded through a slot cut in the document, with its two ends joined together by the seal.

Applied seals were used on letters close (letters intended only for the recipient) and parcels to indicate whether or not the item had been opened or tampered with since it had left the sender, as well as providing evidence that the item was actually from the sender and not a forgery. In the post-medieval period, seals came to be commonly used in this way for private letters. A letter writer would fold the completed letter, pour wax over the joint formed by the top of the page, and then impress a signet ring (from Latin “signum” meaning sign) or other seal matrix.

Full achievements and crest engraved by Dexter's in gold, silver and Sardonyx (blue/red).

Signet rings, in recent times generally bearing a coat of arms, are made by intaglio engraving, either in metal or engraved gems (generally semiprecious). Agate is a frequent material, especially carnelian or banded agate like sardonyx; the banding make the impression contrast with the ground. Most classical engraved gems were originally worn as signet rings.

The Prince of Wales, wearing his signet ring en bagarre on the little finger.

Because it is used to attest the authority of its bearer, the ring has also been seen as a symbol of his power, which is one explanation for its inclusion in the regalia of certain monarchies. After the death of a Pope, the destruction of his signet ring is a prescribed act clearing the way for the sede vacante and subsequent election of a new Pope.

The wearing of signet rings goes back to ancient Egypt; the distinctive personal signature was not developed in antiquity and most documents needed a seal. The tradition continues, especially among the armigerous, in European and some other cultures.

Signet rings are traditionally worn on the ring finger (if not already occupied by the wedding ring) or the little finger on the wedding ring free hand. In France the signet ring is traditionally worn by men on the ring finger of their left hand and women on their little finger. An older Swedish manual teaches that the signet ring should be worn on the little finger by both men and women. In addition the ring can be worn with the tip of the shield either facing the finger nail (en baise-main) or facing the knuckle (en bagarre). The en bagarre position (i.e. ”closed”) is traditionally used to indicate that the wearer is married. The thing one can say with certainty regarding the manner of wear is that the practice differs both within and between countries.

H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden wearing his signet ring on the little finger and what looks like en baise-main.

Regarding the wear of a signet ring (or any ring, really) my personal opinion is, well, less is more. One ought to try to limit ones finger adornment to a maximum of one ring per hand. If two rings are worn on the same hand, try wearing them on the same finger – like H.M. the King above – wearing the wedding ring and the signet ring on the same finger. Not wearing the wedding ring on the ring finger but the little finger together with the signet ring probably originates from the fact that it is much easier and more comfortable to grip the horse’s bridle with the rings this way.

King John of England ("Sansterre") wearing his rings en masse, presumably at least one is a signet ring with the plantagenet badge.

Let me know if you have pictures of other renowned signet ring wearers!

I personally can recommend Dexter Seal Engraving because of their genuine craftsmanship and excellent quality work!

J. Arnell
B. Roetzel
Wikipedia
Dexter Seal Engraving

The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads Wow.

Crunchy numbers

About 3 million people visit the Taj Mahal every year. This blog was viewed about 49,000 times in 2010. If it were the Taj Mahal, it would take about 6 days for that many people to see it.

In 2010, there were 25 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 145 posts. There were 45 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 8mb. That’s about 4 pictures per month.

The busiest day of the year was February 25th with 311 views. The most popular post that day was Heraldry basics.

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were shoutsinthepiazza.blogspot.com, sfr.fr, blogdeheraldica.blogspot.com, georgianheraldry.blogspot.com, and facebook.com.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for armorial blog, spanish coat of arms, spain coat of arms, gustav iii, and pontecorvo.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

Heraldry basics July 2009
3 comments

Spain III August 2008
1 comment

Swedish state orders August 2009
2 comments

Greater imperial arms of Russia November 2009

Flags, standards and ensigns August 2009

The arms of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies surrounded by the collar of the Order of Saint Januarius, the premier decoration of the Kingdom.

The Illustrious Royal Order of Saint Januarius (Reale Ordine di San Gennaro) is an order of knighthood bestowed by the head of the Royal House of Bourbon of the Two Sicilies. It was the last great dynastic collar order to be constituted as a chivalric fraternity, with a limitation to Roman Catholics, and a direct attachment to the dynasty rather than the state. The order continues to be bestowed today by the Head of the Royal House of Bourbon of the Two Sicilies. The founder of the Order, Charles VII of Naples, who ruled from 1734 until 1759, was the first reigning monarch to reside in this kingdom since 1502. As a young monarch, Charles was considerably influenced by his father Philip V of Spain, who had proved a capable if erratic ruler, not only bringing peace to his kingdom but ultimately re-establishing Spanish influence in Italy. Although the Order’s foundation had been planned for some time, the young king’s marriage to Maria Amalia of Saxony provided a suitable opportunity. Its statutes and foundation both date to 3 July 1738 and the first promotions to the Order were announced three days later. These statutes limited membership of the Order to sixty Roman Catholicnoblemen, although non-Catholics have been admitted by successive Grand Masters in exceptional cases and the total complement of the Order has exceeded sixty on several occasions. As an Order of the collar and the highest Order of the Kingdom, it was intended to equal in rank that of the Golden Fleece, awarded by Charles’ father in Spain, and that of the Holy Spirit, given by his cousin in France. Indeed, it was frequent practice for the princes of each branch of the House to receive all three Orders. As they had discussed in their correspondence, King Charles reserved for his father the right to appoint up to six knights, emphasising the unity of the House of Bourbon.

http://www.bourbon-two-sicilies.org/english/januarius_history.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_the_Two_Sicilies

"The Norwegian Lion" since 1280. Gules, a lion rampant or, crowned and bearing an axe with blade argent. The Collar of the Order of Saint Olaf encircles the shield.

]]> http://armorialblog.wordpress.com/2010/07/09/kingdom-of-norway/feed/ 1 Fredrik Norway http://armorialblog.wordpress.com/2010/07/09/princess-sibylla/ http://armorialblog.wordpress.com/2010/07/09/princess-sibylla/#comments Fri, 09 Jul 2010 13:33:01 +0000 Fredrik http://armorialblog.wordpress.com/?p=1087 ]]> Princess Sibylla of Sweden, Duchess of Västerbotten (born Princess Sibylla of  Saxe-Coburg and Gotha) is the mother of the present King of Sweden, Carl XVI Gustaf. She married Crown Prince Gustav Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten in 1932. Her husband died in an airplane crash in Copenhagen 1947.

Princess Sibylla of Sweden

]]> http://armorialblog.wordpress.com/2010/07/09/princess-sibylla/feed/ 3 Fredrik Princess Sibylla http://armorialblog.wordpress.com/2010/07/02/swedish-provincial-arms/ http://armorialblog.wordpress.com/2010/07/02/swedish-provincial-arms/#comments Fri, 02 Jul 2010 11:33:05 +0000 Fredrik http://armorialblog.wordpress.com/?p=1082 ]]> My provincial arms of Sweden project is finally finished, here is a compilation (a more detailed page about all the arms will be published in due course):

Arms of the 25 (historical) provinces of Sweden alphabetically. Click for better resolution.