Shortly after its
foundation in 1977 the executive committee of the Heraldry Society
of Scotland decided that, as a matter of some importance, the
Society should petition for a Grant of Arms. To this end a fund
was instituted which very rapidly grew to meet the costs of such a
petition.
In September of that year a coat of
arms was granted to the Society and was recorded on the 95th page of
the 59th Volume of the Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in
Scotland.
The blazon, or written description
of the coat of arms, is as follows :
Azure, on a saltire Argent
between two thistles slipped Argent, one in chief and one in base,
an escutcheon Gules, and in an Escrol under the same this Motto "TAK
TENT 0' ARMES".
The saltire and the thistles are
symbolic of Scotland and this part of the coat of arms is shared
with such other important institutions as the Society of Writers to
Her Majesty's Signet (granted arms in 1789) and the Society of
Antiquaries of Scotland (granted arms in 1827).
The "escutcheon Gules" is
reminiscent of that held in the sinister paw of the lion sejant in
the Official Coat of the Lord Lyon King of Arms which is recorded in
Volume I of the Public Register (1672-1677).
The motto, in Scots, means "Take
Note of Arms".
To mark its tenth anniversary it
was felt that the Society should petition for a suitable crest. This
was granted on 6th April 1987 and is recorded on the 48th page of
the 69th Volume of the Public Register and is described as follows:
a demi Herald
Proper wearing a bonnet Sable charged of a thistle slipped and
leaved Argent, the tabard emblazoned with the Arms of the Society,
holding in the dexter hand an escutcheon Gules and in the sinister
hand a Roll of Arms Proper.
As the full achievement of the
Society now consists of a shield and a crest, the escrol and motto
is shown above the coat of arms in the traditional Scottish manner. |
