Part 22 (1/2)

_Shoveller._ A species of duck.

_Simple Quartering._ Dividing a s.h.i.+eld quarterly, with the quartering of any of the quarters. See _Quartering_.

_Sinister._ The left side. No. 27.

_Sinople._ The colour _vert_ in French Heraldry.

_Sixfoil._ A flower of six leaves: No. 302.

_Slipped._ Having a stalk, as a leaf or branch: No. 309.

_Spear._ The spear or lance is not of common occurrence in blazon; but it appears, with heraldic propriety, in the arms granted in 1596 to the father of the great poet, who bore--_Or, on a bend sa. a spear gold, the head arg._--the arms of SHAKESPEARE, No. 303. (In the woodcut the bend is accidentally shaded for _gules_, instead of _sable_.)

[Ill.u.s.tration: No. 303.--Arms of Shakespeare.]

_Spur._ Not common as an heraldic charge. Before about 1320 the spur had a single point, and was known as the ”pryck-spur”; about that time appeared a ”rouelle-spur” of simple form; in the middle of the fifteenth century spurs of extravagant length were introduced.

_SS., Collar of._ See _Collar_, and No. 231.

_Stafford-knot._ No. 304.

_Stall-plate._ A plate bearing the arms of a knight and placed in his stall. The stall-plates of the Knights of the GARTER and the BATH are severally placed in the Chapels of ST. GEORGE and of HENRY VII., at Windsor and Westminster. The earliest plates now in existence at Windsor, though many of them bear arms of an earlier date, were executed about 1430.

_Standard._ A long narrow flag, introduced for the purpose of heraldic display, in the time of EDWARD III., but not in general use till a later period. Standards generally had the Cross of ST. GEORGE next the staff, to which succeeded the badge or badges and the motto of the owner. See Chapter XVII.

[Ill.u.s.tration: No. 302.--Sixfoil.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: No. 304.--Stafford Knot.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: No. 305.--Stapleton Badge.]

_Staple._ Borne by STAPLETON: No. 305 represents a badge formed of two staples.

_Statant._ Standing.

_Star._ See _Estoile_ and _Mullet_; also a knightly decoration.

_Stirrup._ Borne, with appropriate straps and buckles, by SCUDAMORE, GIFFARD, and a few others.

_Stock._ The stump of a tree.

_Stringed._ As a harp or a bugle-horn; or, suspended by, or fastened with, a string.

_Sun._ When represented s.h.i.+ning and surrounded with rays, he has a representation of a human face upon his disc, and is blazoned ”_In splendour_.” _Sunbeams_, or _Rays_, are borne in blazon, and form an early charge. See _Collar_.

_Supporter._ A figure of whatsoever kind that stands by a s.h.i.+eld of arms, as if _supporting_ or guarding it. Single Supporters occasionally appear, but the general usage is to have a pair of Supporters--one on each side of the _supported_ s.h.i.+eld. They came gradually into use in the course of the fourteenth century, but were not regularly established as accessories of s.h.i.+elds till about 1425, or rather later. At first they were generally alike, being then duplicate representations of the badge, but subsequently the more prevalent custom was that the two Supporters should differ, as in the case of the Royal Supporters, the Lion and the Unicorn, famous in History as in Heraldry. See _Bearer_, _Tenant_, and also Chapter XVI.

_Surcoat._ Any garment worn over armour; but especially the long flowing garment worn by knights over their armour until about 1325, when its form was modified by cutting it short in front, and it was distinguished as a _Cyclas_. See _Jupon_.

_Surmounted._ Placed over another.