Colour: Difference between revisions
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The word "colour" is problematic. [[Herald]]s prefer to use "tincture" for what ordinary people call colours, because "colour" has a different meaning. |
The word "colour" is problematic. [[Herald]]s prefer to use "[[tincture]]" for what ordinary people call colours, because "colour" has a different meaning. |
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''See also:'' |
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There are three kinds of tincture: colours, [[metal]]s and [[fur]]s. With one exception, everything on a heraldic [[device]] must be in these tinctures. |
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* [[Tincture]] |
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* [[Dye colours]] |
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The five colours, in approximate order from most to least common, are: |
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* [[Sable]] ([[black]]) |
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* [[Gules]] ([[red]]) |
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* [[Azure]] ([[blue]]) |
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* [[Vert]] ([[green]]) |
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* [[Purpure]] ([[purple]]) |
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The two metals are: |
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*[[Or]] ([[yellow]] or [[gold]]) |
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*[[Argent]] ([[silver]] or [[white]]) |
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The furs are many, but the most common ones are: |
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*[[Ermine]] (black ermine spots on a white field) |
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*[[Counter-ermine]] (white ermine spots on black) |
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*[[Erminois]] (black ermine spots on yellow) |
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*[[Pean]] (yellow ermine spots on black) |
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*[[Vair]] (a regular pattern of blue and white) |
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(Note that counter-ermine is called ermines in the literature, but we use the longer name to help stave off typos.) |
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The one exception to these tinctures is called '[[proper]]'. If an creature has a normal, unarguable colouration, then it may be described as proper. For example, a greyhound proper would be grey, or a man proper would be pale pink (in [[Europe]] at least). This has some implications for matters of [[contrast]]. If there is no normal colour for a creature - lions, for example, can be anything from white through yellow to black - or if it's a mythical beast, then it doesn't have a proper colour, so this exception doesn't apply. ((Need to quote precedent here?)) |
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