Sept 17: The History and Evolution of South African Heraldry

The College of Arms Foundation and The Committee on Heraldry of The New York Genealogical & Biographical Society are pleased to invite you to a presentation by

Andrew Cusack on The History and Evolution of South African Heraldry

Tuesday, 17 September 2013
6:00 p.m.
at the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society
36 West 44th Street, 7th Floor
New York, NY 10036

Please email rsvp@coaf.us to reserve. This event is free and open to the public. A reception follows the talk. 

Mr. Cusack's talk will be centered on South African arms incorporating the "three annulets or" of the arms of Jan van Rienbeeck, the putative founding father of South Africa.   This will be the first time we have featured South African heraldry.   

Mr. Cusack is a native New Yorker and a graduate of the University of St. Andrew's, Scotland.  He now lives and works in London.  He is a blogger, writer, historian and vexillophile as well as a heraldist.  His observations, experiences and meditations can be read at www.andrewcusack.com.

Heraldry Talks for 2013-14 in New York City

The complete program schedule for heraldry talks at the NY Genealogical & Biographical Society follows. Any changes and updates will be posted here.  You can also find us on Facebook at New York City Heraldry.  (Like the page and get all the updates as posted.)

All events are free, open to the public, and start at 6 p.m. at the NY G&B Society, 36 West 44th Street, 7th Floor, New York, NY.  A reception follows each talk.  If you would like to be added to the heraldry email list, send your address to me at mariadering@earthlink.net.  Your name will not be shared with any other lists.

Arms of the Republic of South Africa

For the rest of 2013, the schedule is:   

Tuesday 17 September 2013:  Andrew Cusack on South African heraldry.

Tuesday 15 October 2013:  Presentation by Sir Henry Bedingfeld, Norroy and Ulster King of Arms. Sir Henry will be presented with the Medal for Heraldic Achievement.

Monday 4 November 2013:  Lecture by Prof. D'Arcy Boulton of  the University of Notre Dame on French medieval heraldry.

Wednesday 13 November 2013:  George Cannizzaro and Chuck Mugno from the Institute of Heraldry. George will talk about church heraldry; Chuck will update us on new developments at the Institute.

The schedule for 2014 is:
Tuesday 14 January 2014: "Heraldry and Wine, Part II," with/by Paul Campbell and John Shannon

Monday 3 March 2014: "Heraldic Engraving on Colonial Silver," by Maria Dering.

Tuesday 8 April 2014: "The Vocabulary of Heraldry for Beginners," by Paul Campbell.

Monday 12 May 2014: "Armorial Assumptions," by Guy Selvester.

The Book of Gladness/Le Livre de Leesce

 Something tells me that the medievalists among us might be interested in this new book, due for a November release. (Ignore that anachronistic gown!) My good friend Linda Burke -- a superb scholar and my very first buddy in graduate school -- did the annotated translation. The book is available on Amazon.com.

Ars longa vita brevis ... or, How long was I going to wait to post this?

Finally ... here is a photo of the original seal of the City of New York (1686).  Note that the date is 1664, not the date (1625) on the seal currently in use.  The motto reads "Sigilium Civitatis Novi Eboraci," or "Seal (of the) City (of) New York, with Eborum the Latin name for "York."

Photo of seal on a 1926 statue in Central Park, erected by Military Order of Foreign Wars.

Why the change to 1625?  The story goes that Paul O'Dwyer, a fiery member of the NYC Board of Estimate and candidate for U.S. Senate, had no love for the English.  (1664 marked the transition from Dutch to English rule of Manhattan.)  So, O'Dwyer used his influence to get the date changed on the city's seal in the 1970s, and there the Dutch-friendly date 1625 remains to this day.  Ya gotta have clout!

Details on Fall Events 2013

Hello again, everyone.  Here are more details on the fall 2013 events that are co-sponsored by COAF (US) and NY G&B Committee on Heraldry (see previous post):

All events start at 6 p.m. and include light refreshments. Admission is free; events held at the G&B, 36 West 44th Street, Room 711, Manhattan.  If you'd like more information, please post a comment below and I promise to answer you in a timely way.