Heraldic Beasts?

**Downunder Kilt** · 30th October 10, 02:42 PM

Originally Posted by Mike_Oettle

Come on, guys! The Tas is a unique critter. One of the very few marsupial predators. I believe it survived in Tasmania because the dingo couldn't swim across the straits. Then along came white men with guns!

You are quite right Mike, the tiger had no natural predators and it took men with guns to make it extinct. At one stage there was a 1 pound bounty on its head, which in those days was a fortune.

**Bugbear** · 30th October 10, 02:55 PM

This book was suggested in Cecil Wade's book.

Full text of "Heraldry of fish. Notices of the principal families bearing fish in their arms"
by Thomas Moule (IA from Google search).

I was looking for lobster heraldry... Thought MacLowlife might want a lobster on his crest...

**MacLowlife** · 31st October 10, 06:29 AM

I think the difficulty of the lobster as a crest is the likelihood of confusion with the mudbug...Many long years ago, a friend knitted a lovely sweater for me, featuring lobsters in the place of the familiar reindeer. I went looking for its progeny online and found this instead:

http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/20...bster_swe.html

**Bugbear** · 31st October 10, 11:52 AM

I have relatives who hunt mudbugs...

Here's the story of why MacLowlife has a lobster on his crest.

MacLowlife takes his hot date to a seafood restaurant one evening, and there is an aquarium in which two lobsters await their grim fait. One lobster seems to be taking up the middle of the aquarium and the other, who looks a little skinny, is huddled up in a corner with his little eyes pressed to the glass.

MacLowlife's date says, "oh, that's so sad, look at the lobsters..."

So MacLowlife steps up to the aquarium, taps the glass, and points to the skinny lobster in the corner, saying, "I'm going to eat you, grrrr," then shows him his teeth: chop, chop, chop!

MacLowlife's date gasps!
The skinny lobster screams and says, "oh no! The Big blurry monster is going to eat me," and the big lobster in the middle of the aquarium laughs, "ha ha! Their going to eat you. Their going to boil you alive and pull your skinny little legs off."

The Skinny lobster says, "oh no..." and faints; just then the cook steps up behind the aquarium with the lobster tongs, clicking them with a fiendish grin.

MacLowlife's date says, "did you hear what that lobster said? Bad lobster! We'll have the big one in the middle of the tank., and make sure you pull his legs off before you boil him!"

As MacLowlife and his date walk away to be seated, He turns back to the skinny lobster and gives a thumbs up. The lobster winks back as he stretches out across the middle of the tank.

Thus the lounging lobster crest.

**MacLowlife** · 2nd November 10, 07:28 AM

Yeah and it was GOOD, but I didn't eat any of the little legs. Well, only one or two. If memory serves, there is a bar in Waterville , Ireland, with a big sign out front featuring a lobster hoisting a big brown pint. A crustacean after my own heart.

**Bugbear** · 2nd November 10, 12:03 PM

I've never been to Ireland, MacLowlife; though a relative lived there for a few years back in the nineties. Because of this, there is now a pub in Dublin with a blender to make the crushed ice of a Mexican drink.

I gather that the heraldic system in Ireland is different than Scotland's. I'm not sure Spain has one at the moment; I've lost track of that.

**Cygnus** · 2nd November 10, 12:23 PM

Originally Posted by Bugbear

...
I'm not sure Spain has one at the moment; I've lost track of that.

It doesn't. Spain does have the Spanish College of Arms that functions in much the same way as the American Heraldry Society in that it is not regulated by the government but is a private organization.

**macwilkin** · 2nd November 10, 12:51 PM

Originally Posted by Cygnus

It doesn't. Spain does have the Spanish College of Arms that functions in much the same way as the American Heraldry Society in that it is not regulated by the government but is a private organization.

I'm not so sure that the late Don Vicente de Cadenas y Vicent, Cronista Rey de Armas, would have agreed with this statement.

T.

**Cygnus** · 2nd November 10, 01:04 PM

Originally Posted by cajunscot

I'm not so sure that the late Don Vicente de Cadenas y Vicent, Cronista Rey de Armas, would have agreed with this statement.

T.

I suppose I should clarify, then.

Since Don Vicente's death in 2005, the ministry of justice has not appointed a new Cronista Rey de Armas. The King of Spain does have a personal heraldic officer and Castille and Leon has appointed a chronicler of arms, though the office of Cronista Rey de Armas is still vacant.

As far as I understand, there isn't currently an heraldic authority that grants arms in behalf of the Kingdom of Spain, but they may still be registered through the Spanish College of Arms.

**macwilkin** · 2nd November 10, 01:06 PM

Originally Posted by Cygnus

I suppose I should clarify, then.

Since Don Vicente's death in 2005, the ministry of justice has not appointed a new Cronista Rey de Armas. The King of Spain does have a personal heraldic officer and Castille and Leon has appointed a chronicler of arms, though the office of Cronista Rey de Armas is still vacant.

As far as I understand, there isn't currently an heraldic authority that grants arms in behalf of the Kingdom of Spain, but they may still be registered through the Spanish College of Arms.

There ya go!

:mrgreen:

T.