The International Association of Amateur Heralds

Following the discussion of French heraldic registrations, and moving north into Flanders, here's an example of a grant from the Flemish Heraldry Council. According to their manual (from which this is taken), it is A3 in size.



A rough English translation of the text :

The Flemish Government

Cognisant of the decree of 3 February 1998, amended by the decree of 27 April 2007, concerning the determination of the arms of private persons and institutions;

Cognisant of the resolution of the Flemish Government of 17 July 2000 for the implementation of the aforesaid decree;

Cognisant of the request submitted by the applicants under the provisions of the aforesaid decree;

Cognisant of the advice of the Flemish Heraldry Council;

The Flemish Government grants to Hendrik Pieter Joseph Maria Donche, doctor of science, born in Roeselare on 20 March 1951, and to his brother Pieter Adriaan Valeer Paul Donche, computer scientist, born in Roeselare on 18 January 1953, the right to bear the coat of arms as described and depicted :

Gules, a fess Argent charged with two ermine tails Sable, over all a curry comb Argent above a star Or. The shield is ensigned of a helmet argent, barred, garnished and edged Or and lined Azure, with wreath and mantling Gules doubled Argent. Crest : a sun issuant or between a vol antique Gules and Argent. Motto : Fert Uncia Pondus, in letters Gules on a riband Argent;

Determines that aforesaid coat of arms may be borne by the grantees and their descendants who bear their [sur]names;

Directs the Flemish Heraldry Council to enter this grant of arms in the appropriate armorial register and to make it known in the Belgian Government Gazette.

Given at Brussels on 24 October 2008.

Secretary of the Flemish Heraldry Council
Chairman of the Flemish Heraldry Council
Flemish Minister of Finance and the Budget and Spatial Planning
Minister-President of the Flemish Region

Very nice! It's difficult for me to tell, but they do use signatures or arms at the bottom?

Mark Henderson wrote:Very nice! It's difficult for me to tell, but they do use signatures or arms at the bottom?

According to the information brochure, the document is signed by these four officials.

Apparently they hold an annual ceremony at which they hand over the certificates. Alternatively, a grantee can arrange for it to be posted to him, or he can collect it at the Council's offices.

There are some other Flemish grants of arms (and other heraldic eye candy) on these websites :
* http://laurentgranier.com/letters-paten ... ml?lang=en
* http://vandesselheraldiek.be/nl/ms/ms/h ... 07964-p-4/

And photos of the December 2014 ceremony in which patents were presented to grantees :
* https://www.flickr.com/photos/vioe/sets ... 251599820/

Not to mention an example of a registration certificate from the French region of Belgium, which has its own heraldry authority :
* http://i31.servimg.com/u/f31/15/41/89/81/brevet10.jpg

Beautiful work! - Thanks!!

I notice that (typical for the Low Countries) the colours of the motto lettering and its scroll are prescribed, something that would not normally be done in the British Isles.
The (black) colour of the ermine spots also is specified, although this is normally not mentioned in other jurisdictions when ermine tails appear on a white/silver field. Is this also a peculiarity of the Pays Bas?

no hermelijn (ermine) is standard black on white in the Netherlands

You are right, Ton. But then why specify the tails as being black?

Mike_Oettle wrote:You are right, Ton. But then why specify the tails as being black?

Could it be because the ermine tails are charges and not a field sprinkled with tails? For example "Ermine a Cross Potent Gules", but "Argent a Cross Potent Gules between four Ermine Tails Sable.

Chris Green wrote:

Mike_Oettle wrote:You are right, Ton. But then why specify the tails as being black?

Could it be because the ermine tails are charges and not a field sprinkled with tails?

This makes sense. The same thing is found with some (but not all) Henderson arms matriculated in Lyon Register.

The chief in the arms of Henderson of Fordell is blazoned "Argent a crescent Azure between two ermine spots sable" (1985 and, as a quartering in the arms of Mercer-Henderson, 1882).

By contrast, the chief in the arms of William George Henderson (1904) is blazoned as "Argent a rose gules barbed and seeded vert between two ermine spots," the tincture of the latter being (presumably) taken to be sable by default.