-
The Stowe Armorial – quartering galore
Among the most impressive displays of heraldic heritage in the British Isles stands the Stowe Armorial—a testament to the grandeur, ambition, and genealogical complexity of the British aristocracy. Housed in the Gothic Library at Stowe House, the armorial serves not only as a decorative centrepiece but also as a visual chronicle of centuries of strategic…
-
Attributed arms of Incan Emperors
One of the earliest illustrated chronicles of Inca and early colonial history is the Historia general del Piru, written before 1616 by the Mercedarian friar Martín de Muruá. While readers of this blog may recall Guaman Poma de Ayala’s imaginative attribution of arms to the Incan Empire—explored in a previous post—de Muruá went a step further:…
-
Attributed arms of the Incan Empire
In the early seventeenth century, a series of heraldic representations purporting to depict the arms of the Incan Empire were presented to the Spanish crown. While their authenticity as official or historical emblems remains doubtful—more mythological than factual—their iconography powerfully evokes the grandeur, spiritual depth, and imperial majesty of the Inca civilization. These attributed arms…
-
Fideikommiss in Sweden – anachronism or valuable heritage?
Sweden remains the only country in the world to still uphold the institution of fideikommiss—entitled estates, a system in which standard inheritance laws do not apply, and where estates have traditionally been passed down exclusively to the eldest son. Why has this archaic form of inheritance persisted here, long after being abolished elsewhere in Europe?…
-
Lost integrity – Trump’s stolen coat of arms
Did you know that Donald Trump has a coat of arms? On Reddit’s r/heraldry, an image of Donald Trump’s challenge coin recently surfaced. Firstly, what is a challenge coin? Traditionally, challenge coins have been used to prove membership, boost morale, and recognize special achievements. Historically, they were presented by commanders for notable accomplishments or exchanged…
Victor Nordquist