HELLESPONT System:
Sector: 17, Indus No. planets: 10
Subsector: C, Poseidon Habitable: 1
Ruled by: Keene family
HERALDRY, IMPERIAL: Although the idea of coats of arms in an interstellar society with numerous other means of identification seems redundant to some, that purpose became a minor one long before the Empire. Arms are a tradition Emperor Chang thought would serve a unifying purpose, provide continuity, and give an incentive for service beyond the expectable but not sufficient to earn a Life Nobility.
While derived from traditional heraldry and having much in common with it, Imperial heraldry has the advantage of hindsight, which has led to several improvements. The primary one is in descriptions, where English replaces Old French, making them understandable to those who are not specialists in the field. Some traditional terminology has been retained, either because it is generally understandable or because there is no reasonably concise English equivalent. Most terms, however, translated without difficulty; the slightly longer descriptions are acceptable because of the greatly increased clarity. The only exception to this is in the actual Grant of Arms itself, where the traditional blazoning is still used (though an English translation is provided on a separate sheet).
The heraldic colors remain predominantly the bright primary ones: silver (now platinum) or white, and gold or yellow, called metals; black, blue, green, and red, called colors. Less-used colors are orange, purple, brown, and "flesh tone". Taken together, colors and metals are referred to as tinctures. Anything described as "proper" is shown in its normal coloring. Only two of the numerous traditional heraldic "furs" are in Imperial use, ermine (white with black spots) and counter-ermine (black with white spots). As a rule, metal should not be placed on metal or color on color, although exceptions--mostly in the case of charges described as "proper"--do occur.
As in traditional heraldry, the field is described first, by color and any divisions, with the color on the bearer's right or at the shield's top mentioned first. Left and right, in all cases, refer to the point of view of the person supposedly carrying the shield.
Traditional description English description
Party per pale Divided vertically
Party per fess Divided horizontally
Party per bend Divided by right diagonal
Party per bend sinister Divided by left diagonal
Party per saltire Divided by both diagonals
Party per chevron Divided by a chevron
Quarterly Quarterly
Checky Checked
Tierced per fess Three-part horizontally
Tierced per pale Three-part vertically
Gyronny Divided by gyron
Gurgy (and variants) Spiraled
Charges may be (and usually are) placed on the field, and cover any divisions. The major geometric charges (ordinaries) are mentioned first, if any appear. They generally take up approximately a third of the shield, though this proportion may vary if other charges appear, or they have other charges upon them. Note that the vertical and horizontal bars should not be confused with the three-part fields.
Traditional description English description
Chief Chief
Fess Horizontal bar
Pale Vertical bar
Bend Right-diagonal bar
Bend sinister Left-diagonal bar
Chevron Chevron
Chevron reversed Reversed chevron
Cross Cross
Saltire Double diagonal
Pile Wedge
Quarter Quarter
Pall Y-fork
Flanches Flanches
Diminutives (except for the quarter) are one-half normal width, prefixed "demi-", or one-quarter normal width, prefixed "quadri-" and usually borne paired. The quarter's only diminutive is the canton, taking up an eighth of the shield. If these charges do not extend to the shield edges, they are described as "clipped".