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Arms of the RC Archdiocese of Singapore

Posted: 11 Jul 2015, 19:07
by Marcus Karlsson
Come across the Armorial Bearings of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore http://www.catholic.org.sg/about/ you might have to scroll down the page.

Re: Arms of the RC Archdiocese of Singapore

Posted: 11 Jul 2015, 19:49
by Michael F. McCartney
Thanks for posting the link!
The arms of the archdiocese are nice, fairly clean and simple, and nicely symbolic of both Singapore and the RC church there.

Re: Arms of the RC Archdiocese of Singapore

Posted: 11 Jul 2015, 20:24
by Chris Green
I wonder who was the herald. The arms could I suppose have been granted by the College of Arms, Singapore being a former British colony, though this is unlikely. The Vatican has no heraldic authority of its own of course so the CoA may have simply been assumed.

Re: Arms of the RC Archdiocese of Singapore

Posted: 12 Jul 2015, 16:23
by Michael F. McCartney
Outside of the the UK and Ireland, I suspect the majority of RC arms are assumed.

Re: Arms of the RC Archdiocese of Singapore

Posted: 13 Jul 2015, 00:16
by JMcMillan
Michael F. McCartney wrote:Outside of the the UK and Ireland, I suspect the majority of RC arms are assumed.


And Canada.

Re: Arms of the RC Archdiocese of Singapore

Posted: 13 Jul 2015, 06:15
by Chris Green
I am still mystified as to why Pope John XXIII should have taken the advice of Archbishop Bruno Heim (his former secretary and the foremost exponent of ecclesisatical heraldry of his time) and abolished the Heraldry Commission of the Roman Curia in 1960. Heim was apparently offered the post but turned it down, and persuaded the Pope that continued Vatican control of heraldry would, in his words: "stifle the artistry that is a great part of the attraction of heraldry".

I can only speculate that Heim could see that his future career was as a papal diplomat (in which he was to be very successful), and he could still enjoy his heraldry in an unofficial capacity (he was responsible for designing the arms of no less than four Popes). Head of the Vatican Heraldry Commission would have been a backwater by comparison. And had the Commission continued under someone else, Heim would have had to bow to the heraldic opinions and decisions of someone less capable than himself. Perhaps our learned priestly members have an alternative explanation.

That said, Roman Catholic heraldry in the last 50 years has suffered grave depredations at the hands of untutored amateurs, as some of the examples elsewhere in this Forum witness.

Archbishop Heim had no truck with the tincture "rule", as his own CoA witnesses:

Image

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruno_Heim

Re: Arms of the RC Archdiocese of Singapore

Posted: 13 Jul 2015, 06:23
by Chris Green
I wonder who was the herald. The arms could I suppose have been granted by the College of Arms, Singapore being a former British colony, though this is unlikely. The Vatican has no heraldic authority of its own of course so the CoA may have simply been assumed.


Sudden thought! The elegance of the Singapore Archdiocese's CoA suggests that Heim himself may perhaps have been the herald.

Re: Arms of the RC Archdiocese of Singapore

Posted: 14 Jul 2015, 21:57
by Michael F. McCartney
Joe wrote, "and Canada" -- which is of course correct, with a number of very nice examples in the CHA online record. Quick fingers, slow brain... ;)

There may be others, possibly South Africa, or other places with a functional official heraldic office. In countries with no heraldic executive - i.e. most of the world - churches, like everyone else who wishes, just assume arms on their own behalf. Some of the results are good, others not so much...

Re: Arms of the RC Archdiocese of Singapore

Posted: 15 Jul 2015, 09:39
by Arthur Radburn
Michael F. McCartney wrote:There may be others, possibly South Africa, or other places with a functional official heraldic office. In countries with no heraldic executive - i.e. most of the world - churches, like everyone else who wishes, just assume arms on their own behalf. Some of the results are good, others not so much...

Although South Africa has a heraldry authority, the RC bishops do not register their arms. Some of them would not be able to register, as their 'arms' do not conform to heraldic principles.

Re: Arms of the RC Archdiocese of Singapore

Posted: 17 Jul 2015, 20:07
by Marcus Karlsson
Chris Green wrote:
I wonder who was the herald. The arms could I suppose have been granted by the College of Arms, Singapore being a former British colony, though this is unlikely. The Vatican has no heraldic authority of its own of course so the CoA may have simply been assumed.


Sudden thought! The elegance of the Singapore Archdiocese's CoA suggests that Heim himself may perhaps have been the herald.


Something leads me to belive that this is a rather recent design. So it was probably made after Heim's death.