NYC Heraldry

Great Talk Coming Up - March 12

2012-02-25T14:09:00.010-08:00

Hope to see you at this new talk:

Monday, 12 March 2012
6 p.m.
New York Genealogical & Biographical Society, 36 West 44th Street, Room 711, Manhattan
Admission is free.
Presenter: The Rev. Guy W. Selvester, an expert on church heraldry and a member of the Committee on Heraldry
Topic: "The Use of the Miter versus the Galero in Ecclesiastical Heraldry."

Details: Fr. Selvester is a Governor-at-Large of the American Heraldry Society, as well as a fine heraldic designer and artist and a member of the Committee on Heraldry. He recently gave the Mark Elvins Lecture on Church Heraldry at the Heraldry Society in London. Pictured: Arms Surmounted by Galero.

Space is limited, so please respond to John Shannon at john.shannon@coaf.us at your earliest convenience.

Guide to Dutch Lineage Research

2012-01-12T15:14:00.001-08:00

Hello, everyone! Many of you might have Dutch ancestors who have coats of arms. Perhaps you'd like to know more about those families or are just curious about searching for ancestors in New Netherland. The Society of Daughters of Holland Dames has just published my guide to Dutch research -- and you can purchase a copy for just $10.00 plus postage, here: http://www.hollanddames.org/images/docs/hollanddamesgifts.pdf

Scroll down the page to read about the guide; the order form is at the bottom. Clip, enclose your check, and mail. I hope this is helpful to you.

Alta Studia Heraldica

2012-01-07T17:00:00.001-08:00

Hello, everyone. Duane Galles, a heraldist friend from the Midwest, pointed me to the journal Alta Studia Heraldica here: http://ash.heraldry.ca. This is published by the Royal Heraldry Society of Canada, at www.heraldry.ca. The site is content rich; have a look and happy reading!

Stone Carving, Old School

2012-01-04T09:46:00.000-08:00

Hello, everyone. I thought this was interesting, and heraldry-related. See photos of the Cathedral below, from April 2011. More to come!

http://www.westsiderag.com/2012/01/04/upper-west-side-stone-carver-chisels-away-at-st-john-the-unfinished

An Invitation ...

2012-01-02T03:03:00.000-08:00

Please join the New York City Heraldry Facebook page for quick updates on activities, new photos, and heraldry news. The Wall is open to all group members, and I hope you'll post your heraldry news there, as well as your comments here. I'll continue to alert FB members to new posts here, too.

Thank you for your interest. It's exciting to read your comments and greet new blog followers!

Regarding the Old NYC Seal ...

2012-01-02T02:54:00.000-08:00

The old seal (with the 1664 date) is hard to find, but about a year ago, I saw it on the base of a flagpole in Central Park. I KNOW I have a digital photo here ... somewhere ... but will return to take another and post it. Has anyone else seen it -- near the West 72nd Street entrance on low-rising hill?

Happy New Year!

Old Seal/New Seal - City of New York

2012-01-01T20:21:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! To start us off this year, Sandy Sanford explains why there were two dates on the seal of the City of New York, and why the older date prevailed. Here are the details:

The basic design of the Seal of the City of New York originated in the seventeenth century and has been in continuous use since that time with two major modifications: first, at the time of the American War of Independence, the crown originally at the top of the seal was replaced by an eagle, signifying the new nation; second, approximately two hundred years later the date at the bottom, which was originally 1664, was replaced with the date 1625.

Here is the seal dated 1664:

from Seal and flag of the city of New York: authorized by the committee appointed by the mayor to commemorate the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the installation of the first mayor ... Edited by John B. Pine. In the public domain; on Google Books.

The first date commemorated the year that the Dutch ceded control of New Amsterdam to the English. In the 1970s, however, a passionately anti-English New York City politician, Paul O'Dwyer, led the move to replace the date (1664) with one that made no reference to the English but rather commemorated the locating of the administrative center of the Dutch New Netherland colony to New Amsterdam.

Here is the newer seal with the older date:

This image (available from Wikipedia Commons) is in the public domain and is originally from Vector-Images. com. The vectorization is by Alexei Ishimov.

Illustrated Heraldry Talks in 2012

2011-12-29T17:53:00.001-08:00

Hello, everyone! I have exciting news about five new heraldry talks and presentations scheduled for 2012. These talks are sponsored by the College of Arms Foundation in partnership with the Committee on Heraldry of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society.

All talks are free and open to the public; they begin at 6 p.m. and each event lasts about two hours. All events take place at the NY G&B offices, 36 West 44th Street, Room 711, Manhattan. Reservations are suggested: email john.shannon@coaf.us or post a comment here with your name and contact information. Here are the details.

Monday 12 March 2012
Presenter: The Rev. Guy W. Selvester, an expert on church heraldry and a member of the Committee on Heraldry
Topic: "The Use of the Miter versus the Galero in Ecclesiastical Heraldry."
Details: Fr. Selvester is a Governor-at-Large of the American Heraldry Society, as well as a fine heraldic designer and artist and a member of the Committee on Heraldry. He recently gave the Mark Elvins Lecture on Church Heraldry at the Heraldry Society in London. Pictured: Arms Surmounted by Galero.

Monday 16 April 2012
Presenters: John Shannon and Paul Campbell
Topic: How to Acquire English and Scottish arms.
Details: Both speakers are armigers. John Shannon is the chairman of the committee as well as the president of the College of Arms Foundation and acquired arms from the College of Arms in London.

Paul Campbell, a member of the Heraldry Society of Scotland, acquired arms for his father from the Court of Lord Lyon in Edinburgh, and is an expert on Campbell arms, or which there are many variants. Just learned that Paul will bring a full-sized color reproduction of his father's grant! Pictured: Letters Patent, John McConville Shannon

Monday 17 September 2012
Presenter: Joseph McMillan
Topic: The heraldry of American Presidents.
Details: This talk will cover both hereditary arms of early US presidents and also more recent granted arms. Mr. McMillan is a governor-at-large of the American College of Heraldry. A career civil servant with over 28 years of service in the Department of Defense, he is a senior research fellow at the Institute for National Strategic Studies. Pictured: Arms of President Chester A. Arthur.

Monday 3 December, 2012
Presenter: Cathy Bursey-Sabourin, Fraser Herald of the Canadian Heraldic Authority
Topic: The distinction between a logo and a coat of arms.
Details: Ms. Sabourin has been Fraser Herald at the Canadian Heraldic Authority in Ottawa since 1989. She is the principal artist of the Authority and has been responsible for the paintings made for the arms of the last five Governors General of Canada and the Coat of arms of Canada.

DATE TBA:
The Heraldry of Wine
During the coming year the committee members will select of a number of wine bottle labels displaying a coat of arms, and select some from a particular region. Then, in November, there will be a presentation on the history of those arms accompanied by a tasting of the wines in question. More details to come in mid-2012.

Heraldry at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine

2011-04-22T18:47:00.000-07:00

In early April, I toured the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, NYC, with the St. Nicholas Society of NY. Our guide, the excellent and well-informed Father Thomas Pike, led us through the length and breadth of the building, where I took photos of most of the shields embedded in the floor (having wandered away on my own, no disrespect intended). I also photographed the baptistry. Here are a few images, with more to come.

First, here is the Stuyvesant shield from the baptistry:

The inscription reads: "This baptistry is erected to the glory of God and in loving memory of Augustus Van Horne Stuyvesant and Harriet Le Roy Suyvesant by their children Catherine E.S. Stuyvesant, Augustus Van Horne Stuyvesant Jr. and Anne W. Stuyvesant. Dedicated anno Domini MCMXXVIII.

The motto, I believe, reads: "Jovae praestat filere quam homini." The best translation I can give is "In excellence as possible by man," which is not elegant. [Man should strive for excellence?] Does anyone have a better one? I'd be grateful ... This is the same inscription that appears on the tomb of Rutherford Stuyvesant.

Here are two shields sent into the floor of a side aisle:

This is a stripped-down version of the arms of the City of Cologne, Germany, emphasizing the Three Kings, but without the eleven flames that are said to signify Saint Ursula.

The bones of the Three Kings (Magi) are said to be kept in a golden tomb in Cologne Cathedral. I leave it to you to discover whether this is true, though the story has its roots as far back as the twelfth century.

Finally for today, here is a rendering of the arms of the municipality of Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain:

This rendering features the tomb of St. James, strongly associated with this city, and the star shining above his resting place. Omitted are the Host, chalice, and seven crosses that appear on the left side of the arms of the city. What you see above appears on the right half (as you view it) of the shield.

Comments, corrections, additions, anyone? Always grateful for your time and consideration.

A very happy Easter to all!

New Photos NYC Seals

2011-02-07T22:57:00.000-08:00

Greetings and early good morning! Just posted four new photos of seals on public buildings on the New York City Heraldry page on Facebook. Come on over, join the group, and check out all the photos!

More here soon ...

New York City's Seals

2011-01-27T15:32:00.001-08:00

In Central Park, there is still one example of the old seal of New York City, which looks like this:

from Seal and flag of the city of New York: authorized by the committee appointed by the mayor to commemorate the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the installation of the first mayor ... Edited by John B. Pine. In the public domain; on Google Books.

The relatively new seal bears the date 1625. You can see it on many municipal buildings, on wikipedia.com (copyright protected), and on NYC licenses.

Heraldists and historians: Why was the date changed? Do you know the answer?

Do you know where the old seal appears in Central Park?

Post here -- and stay tuned for a great story.

Heraldry Everywhere -- T-Shirts Today!

2010-06-26T14:57:00.001-07:00

I was walking home when I spied a group of bicyclists outside Levain Bakery. Their t-shirts caught my eye from a half-block away. Here is the design used by the Overseas Chinese Mission (OCM) to identify themselves and their organization. My thanks to these cheerful people for allowing me to photograph the back of one of their group!

Heraldry is bold and visible this afternoon! I hope the OCM had a great bike ride today.

Pythian Heraldry??

2010-06-24T15:07:00.000-07:00

All photos by Maria A. Dering

Since the early 1980s, I have been fascinated by a building in my Upper West Side Manhattan neighborhood: formerly the Pythian Temple, now a condominium. If you would like a larger image of the plaque, please post a comment here or a note on Facebook.

Today, I photographed the exterior details and present them here. The question: are these examples of heraldry (ways to identify oneself and group), decoration, symbols, or something else? What do you think? Please comment.

above the main entrance

Pharoanic figures, maybe based on Ramses II

Horus, perhaps?

asps and lotus

ankh, asp, etc.

At a glance:

2 Heraldry Presentations

2010-06-22T01:19:00.000-07:00

Hello, everyone! Just posted two of my heraldry presentations on my website: www.mariadering.com. Click "Portfolio" once there and scroll down to the Heraldry heading. The "Lost Arms" presentation takes a few seconds to load. I hope you enjoy these.

Arms of the Czech Republic

2010-05-10T14:42:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Sandy Sanford for grabbing a photo of the shield on the outside of the Czech Mission on Madison Avenue, Manhattan. Aren't these lovely?

The English translation of the label reads: "Permanent Mission of the Czech Republic to the United Nations."

Heraldry Night at the Movies

2010-05-08T14:57:00.001-07:00

For those of you who love to go poking around to find heraldry on film, Turner Classic Movies has a quadruple threat tonight (5/8), starting at 8 p.m. Eastern: The Lion in Winter, then the Errol Flynn Adventures of Robin Hood, followed by Robin and Marian. And if you can last until 2:30 a.m., tune in to Becket. Happy viewing!

Hamburg and Antwerp

2010-05-05T14:08:00.000-07:00

Hello again! I'm back to posting photos of the arms on #1 Broadway. Today's feature is the double arms of the port cities of Hamburg and Antwerp. Amazing that these were done in mosaic tiles!

Photo by Floyd Smith Sanford, III

Regarding Hamburg:
The shield pictured above seems most closely related to the city's seal from the year 1245, here:

Courtesy Wikipedia.

As with so many heraldic creations, the seal changed over time as did the arms. But I am glad that the artist for the mosaics at #1 Broadway chose to model his design upon this lovely and gracious 13th century piece.

According to Wikipedia, "The oldest coat of arms of Hamburg has been retained on a city seals int the 12th and 13th century. During the centuries the towers, walls, pinnacles and symbols of the coat of arms of Hamburg changed several times, without changing in character. The central castle was shown with opened doors sometimes with closed doors and with a portcullis."

There must be a moat in front of that door, don't you think?

The mosaic shield of Antwerp is a faithful representation of the city's:

Courtesy Wikipedia.

I found a full description of the arms -- in Dutch -- here: http://www.felixarchief.be/Unrestricted/Folder.aspx?document_id=09041acf800008be&format=pdf. The arms are fascinating and have gone through several iterations.

In the article, at least you can see the arms broken down by elements and perhaps make out bits of the text here and there. Translation, anyone??

More shields soon!

New Heraldic Beast

2010-05-03T08:24:00.000-07:00

Greetings and welcome to my revivified NYC Heraldry blog!

I am pleased to share with you a fresh new example of heraldry from a young artist: Brianna Rivera.

Artist: Brianna Rivera

I have dubbed the beast (with apologies for my errors in Latin) Quadropedia Puella Fugens (“four-footed flying girl”). Brianna tells this blogger that the Quad Puella has the wings of a butterfly, humps of a camel, and wings of unicorn. She also has a dolphin’s tale and an extra “stumpy” tail, added for no particular reason.

The feet are those of the dragon, alligator, giraffe, and a bird. The Quad Puella is most likely passant fugens, if there is such a thing.

The colors and patterns, which break the boundaries of heraldic conventions, include gules, azure, rose, argent, purpureus, and or. The field is argent. The rest I leave up to the many experts among us! Feel free to add your descriptions in the comments field or on Facebook – New York City Heraldry page.

I hope you all enjoy this lovely work from Brianna. And look for more updates right here, on a weekly basis.

-- Terrere Nolo Timere Nescio (from the Dering Arms)

Upper West Side Heraldry

2010-04-06T02:40:00.000-07:00

I'll be poking around the neighborhood for more examples of heraldry (and almost heraldry) and will post photos soon.

The Arms of Portugal & a Cement Mixer

2009-11-22T13:03:00.000-08:00

Big smile! As I mentioned on Facebook today, I just saw a bright yellow cement mixer with the arms of Portugal painted on its side, driving east on 59th Street in Manhattan. Here is the shield:

Photo by Douglas Kiddie

Here are the full arms:

Thanks to Jorge L. Rivera, III, for supplying this image and the following information:

First documented coat of arms dates from the eleventh century, during the time of Sancho I and Sancho II. That coat showed these same five blue escutcheons charged by silver dots. Ca. 1252, under Alfonso II, the shield was added with the red border and golden castles, as seen here.

From 1385-1816, elements were added until this coat of arms (above) was adopted in 1911. As you can see, it is based on the arms (especially the shield) in use since the eleventh century.

Brilliant Shields in St. Thomas Church

2009-11-11T15:46:00.001-08:00

On Monday evening, 11/9, I was honored and pleased to present a program about the 16 heraldic shields that hang in Saint Thomas Church, 53rd Street and Fifth Avenue, Manhattan. They are the shields of America's World War I allies.

Here are a few of them:

Leo Belgicus, the Lion of the Kingdom of Belgium

New Zealand

and one of my favorites,

the Lesser Arms of Imperial Russia

If you would like to see all 16 shields in person, visit St. Thomas Church and look for the World War I Memorial on your left facing the altar, as you enter the church. If you would like more information about specific shields, please email me at mariadering@earthlink.net.

My deepest thanks to Douglas Kiddie for photographing all of the shields so beautifully.

Hanging around South America

2009-07-28T21:00:00.001-07:00

Here are the beautiful arms of Rio de Janiero and Buenos Aires. There are several of these paired mosaics on #1 Broadway. More to come soon. For now, enjoy the view!

Photo by Floyd Smith Sanford, III

Down to Montevideo

2009-07-14T17:25:00.000-07:00

Here are the arms of the City of Montevideo, Uruguay, as depicted on #1 Broadway

Photograph by Floyd Smith Sanford, III

and on an image I grabbed (with appropriate permissions, of course) from Wikipedia. If anyone has a more traditional rendering, please let me know and I will be happy to post it.

These arms depict "el Cerro" (the hill) with the city's grand fortess and lighthouse. The motto, attributed to Jose Gervasio Artigas, translates as "With liberty I neither offend nor fear."

José Gervasio Artigas Arnal (June 19, 1764 - September 23, 1850) is a important national figure, sometimes called "the father of Uruguayan independence." You can read more about the country, its culture, and people at http://www.turismo.gub.uy

What Is It about Lions?

2009-07-11T19:43:00.000-07:00

This lion rampant appears on one of the most interesting structures on Riverside Drive, Manhattan: an old horse-watering trough near 77th Street. Perhaps an equine figure would have been more appropriate? But then again, lions seem so much more appealing as evidence of "having arrived" in Manhattan!

Photo by Maria A. Dering

Liverpool Conundrum - Solved!

2009-07-03T17:31:00.000-07:00

Heartfelt thanks to heraldist Luc Duerloo of Antwerp (and, frequently, Connecticut) for emailing the answer to my question of July 2 about the Liverpool arms:

"The arms depicted are not quite those of the city (granted in 1797). They are, in fact, the arms of the Church of England bishopric granted in 1882. The blazon reads: argent, an eagle rising sable, beaked and legged and a glory round the head or, holding in the dexter claw an inkhorn proper; a chief per pale azure and gules, charged on the dexter side with an open book or, inscribed in letters sable 'Thy word is truth' and on the sinister side an ancient ship with three masts, sails furled, also or."

It is fantastic that heraldry professionals and lovers of the art communicate across the globe about intriguing puzzles, discoveries, and mysteries. Luc, thank you for your illuminating information. I know that the visitors to this blog will appreciate your knowledge and interest. Luc is a member of a new group on Facebook, New York City Heraldry. If you would like to join the group, log on and search for the group by name or look for me as the Administrator.

A happy Independence Day to all! Stay tuned for a post about an element of Huguenot art that became a defining symbol of the United States.

Lovely Liverpool

2009-07-02T16:48:00.000-07:00

Next on the roster of arms are those of the City of Liverpool. In doing my research, I found some interesting facts on Flagspot , to wit:

"It seems that Liverpool has no flag. The arms are a gold liverbird bearing an olive branch in its mouth on an argent field." -- Ensign & Jack #8, Jaume Ollé, 24 Jan. 2001

Photo courtesy of Floyd Smith Sanford, III

I also found this on Flagspot:

"It is a cormorant on the arms of Liverpool. It was inspired by an American flag with a bald eagle on it, and developed with a hint of the famous Liverpool humour. The "liver birds" are Oliver and Olivia - she looking out to sea waiting for her true love to return, he looking into the city to see if the pubs are open!" -- Valerie Sullivan, 16 June 2004

However, here we see only one of the loving pair -- Oliver or Olivia? -- and two images at the top of the shield: the motto "THY WOPD IS TRUTH" (minus a tile or two on the tail of the "p") and a fine sailing ship. Does anyone know where or when these were first used? Or perhaps the artist of #1 Broadway added them.

A bit of background on the Liverpudlian arms, and another illustration:

thanks to Flagspot

"Carr, 1961, says 'Liverpool's arms date from 1797, when the heralds, having never heard of Litherland close by, were left to choose between the pool of laver - that is, the seaweed Porphyra - and the pool of the liver, a bird unknown to naturalists; and, failing to find a figure of the imaginary bird, they invented a sort of short-necked cormorant, into whose beak they put a couple of fronds of Porphyra in case it was Liverpool after all.

"This very neat instance of heraldic hedging did not, however, meet with the success it deserved, for the old name was discovered to be Litherpool - that is, the sluggish pool - yet the cormorant and the seaweed remain, for they are in the grant.' Carr therefore suggests that cities may use banners of arms." -- Jarig Bakker, 2 Apr. 2002

So, what do YOU think? Does anyone have any more information?

For My Facebook Friends

2009-06-30T17:34:00.000-07:00

I just started a new group on Facebook: New York City Heraldry. Log in, join the group, and post your photos of heraldry -- good, bad, surprising -- that you've encountered in the five boroughs. This is an informal group in which we can share our discoveries, questions, and comments.

More soon about Liverpool.

More from England

2009-06-28T17:39:00.000-07:00

Here is another lovely example of heraldry from #1 Broadway, in two versions.

First, Plymouth in Manhattan:

Photo courtesy of Floyd Smith Sanford, III

and the full-blown arms of the City of Plymouth thanks to http://www.plymouthdata.info/CoatofArms.htm (complete description at that site):

The motto is 'Turris fortissima est nomen Jehova' translating as "The name of Jehovah is the strongest tower" and is taken from Proverbs.

Nice to see a direct correspondence between the two versions! Next post will deal with the puzzling arms of Liverpool on #1 Broadway. Stay tuned!

Over to Europe

2009-06-28T10:55:00.001-07:00

As I reviewed our photos of the arms on #1 Broadway, I noticed that the only American example was that of New York City. I would like to have seen what the artist used as his models for San Francisco, Baltimore, New Orleans, and other ports.

Let's head over to Europe. The designer of #1 Broadway used the flag of the City of London as the model for this shield:

Photo by Floyd Smith Sanford, III

Here is the flag of the City of London, courtesy of Wikipedia:

An interesting contrast ...

Let's Start with New York City

2009-05-23T10:03:00.000-07:00

Photo by Floyd Smith Sanford, III

Today, my husband, Sandy Sanford, and I photographed more than a dozen coats of arms -- representing Cunard Line ports of call -- that grace the building at #1 Broadway. I've glanced up at these often but never thought more than "hmm, nice colors!" Now, with a bit more study under my belt, these works mean much more to me.

I will post one or two photos every week along with comments. So -- let's start close to home. The arms above are labeled "New York," but seem to be more of a rendition or interpretation. They (and all of the designs) are executed in mosaic tile; if you look closely, you can see many missing tiles although the total effect is still beautiful.

The arms on #1 Broadway are not quite as elaborate as those that appear on the official city seal:

For a complete description, visit http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcas/html/features/greenbook_seal_flag.shtml; on www.nyc.gov.

Welcome!

2009-05-23T09:29:00.001-07:00

This is the first post in my new blog about heraldry in New York City. I will post photos of interesting and little-known heraldry and explanations as I find them. I welcome your comments.