ANIMALS AS SUPPORTERS

When we turn to animals as supporters, we at once get to a much wider range, and but little can be said concerning them beyond stating that though usually rampant, they are sometimes sejant, and may be guardant or regardant. One may, however, append examples of the work of different artists, which will doubtle serve as models, or po ibly may develop ideas in other artists. The Lion naturally first claims 435 one's attention. Fig. 670 shows an interesting and curious instance of the use of a single lion as a supporter. This is taken from a drawing in the po e ion of the town library at Breslau ( Herold , 1888, No. 1), and represents the arms of Dr. He in rich Rubische, Physician to the King of Hungary and Bohemia. The arms are, "per fe e," the chief argent, a "point" throughout sable, charged with a lion's face, holding in the jaws an annulet, and the base also argent charged with two bars sable. The mantling is sable and argent. Upon the helmet as crest are two buffalo's horns of the colours of the shield, and between them appears (apparently as a part of the heritable crest) a lion's face holding an annulet as in the arms. This, however, is the face of the lion, which, standing behind the escutcheon, is employed as the supporter, though po ibly it is intended that it should do double duty. This employment of one animal to serve a double armorial purpose is practically unknown in British armory, except po ibly in a few early examples of seals, but in German heraldry it is very far from being uncommon. IMG:855465476085164071_fig670.png:Fig. 670. Fig. 670. —Arms of Dr. He in rich Rubische. 436 Winged lions are not very usual, but they occur as the supporters of Lord Braye: "On either side a lion guardant or, winged vair." A winged lion is also one of the supporters (the dexter) of Lord Leconfield, but this, owing to the position of the wings, is quite unique. The blazon is: "A lion with wings inverted azure, collared or." Two lions rampant double-queued, the dexter or, the sinister sable, are the supporters of the Duke of Portland, and the supporters of both the Earl of Fever sham and the Earl of Dart mouth afford instances of lions crowned with a coronet, and i uing therefrom a plume of ostrich feathers. Sea-lions will be found as supporters to the arms of Viscount Falmouth ["Two sea-lions erect on their tails argent, gutté-de-l'armes"], and the Earl of Howth bears: "Dexter, a sea-lion as in the crest; sinister, a mermaid proper, holding in her exterior hand a mirror." The heraldic tiger is occasionally found as a supporter, and an instance occurs in the arms of the Marque of Duffer in and Ava. It also occurs as the sinister supporter of the Duke of Leeds, and of the Barone Darcy de Knayth, and was the dexter supporter of the Earls of Holder ne . Two heraldic tigers are the supporters both of Sir Andrew Noel Agnew, Bart., and of the Marque of Anglesey. Of recent years the natural tiger has taken its place in the heraldic menagerie, and instances of its appearance will be found in the arms of Sir Mortimer Durand, and as one of the supporters of the arms of the city of Bombay. When occurring in heraldic surroundings it is always termed for distinction a "Bengal tiger," and two Royal Bengal tigers are the supporters of Sir Francis Outram, Bart.: "On either side a Royal Bengal tiger guardant proper, gorged with a wreath of laurel vert, and on the head an Eastern crown or." The griffin is perhaps the next most favourite supporter. Male griffins are the supporters of Sir George John Egerton Dashwood: "On either side a male gryphon argent, gorged with a collar flory counter flory gules." A very curious supporter is borne by Mr. Style man Le Strange. Of course, as a domiciled English commoner, having no Royal Licence to bear supporters, his claim to these additions would not be recognised, but their use no doubt originated in the fact that he represents the lines of several coheir ships to different baronies by writ, to some one of which, no doubt, the supporters may have at some time belonged. The dexter supporter in question is "a stag argent with a lion's forepaws and tail, collared." The supporters recently granted to Lord Milner are two "springbok," and the same animal (an "oryx" or "springbok") is the sinister supporter of the arms of Cape Colony. 437 Goats are the supporters of the Earl of Portsmouth (who styles his "chamois or wild goats"), of Lord Bagot and Lord Cran worth, and they occur in the achievements of the Barony of Ruthven and the Marque of Norman by. The supporters of Viscount South well are two "Indian" goats. Rams are the supporters of Lord de Ramsey and Lord Sherard. A ram is also one of the supporters attached to the Barony of Ruthven, and one of the supporters used by the town of New Galloway. These arms, however, have never been matriculated, which on account of the curious charge upon the shield is very much to be regretted. The supporters of Lord Mowbray and Stourton afford an example of a most curious and interesting animal. Originally the Lords Stourton used two antelopes azure, but before the seventeenth century these had been changed to two "sea-dogs." When the abeyance of the Barony of Mowbray was determined in favour of Lord Stourton the dexter supporter was changed to the lion of Mowbray, but the sinister supporter still remained a "sea-dog." The horse and the pegasus are constantly met with supporting the arms of peers and others in this country. A bay horse regardant figures as the dexter supporter of the Earl of Yarborough, and the horses which support the shield of Earl Cowper are very specifically detailed in the official blazon: "Two dun horses close cropped (except a tuft upon the withers) and docked, a large blaze down the face, a black list down the back, and three white feet, viz. the hind-feet and near fore-foot." Lord Joicey has two Shetland ponies and Lord Winter stoke has "two horses sable, maned, tailed, and girthed or." The arms of the City of London are always used with dragons for supporters, but these supporters are not officially recorded. The arms of the City of London are referred to at greater length elsewhere in these pages. The town of Apple by uses dragons with wings expanded (most fearsome creatures), but these are not official, nor are the "dragons sejant addorsed gules, each holding an ostrich feather argent affixed to a scroll" which some enterprising artist designed for Cheshire. Dragons will be found as supporters to the arms of the Earl of Enniskillen, Lord St. Oswald, the Earl of Castle stuart, and Viscount Arbuthnot. The heraldic dragon is not the only form of the creature now known to armory. The Chinese dragon was granted to Lord Gough as one of his supporters, and it has since also been granted as a supporter to Sir Robert Hart, Bart. Wyverns are the supporters of the Earl of Meath and Lord Burghclere, and the sinister supporter of both Lord Raglan and Lord Lyveden. 438 The arms of the Royal Burgh of Dundee are quite unique. The official blazon runs: "Azure, a pott of growing lillies argent, the escutcheon being supported by two dragons, their tails nowed together underneath vert, with this word in an escroll above a lilie growing out of the top of the shield as the former, 'Dei Donum.'" Though blazoned as dragons, the creatures are undoubtedly wyverns. Wyverns when figuring as supporters are usually represented standing on the one claw and supporting the shield with the other, but in the case of the Duke of Marl borough, whose supporters are two wyverns, these are generally represented sejant erect, supporting the shield with both claws. This position is also adopted for the wyvern supporters of Sir Robert Arbuthnot, Bart., and the Earl of Eglinton. Two cockatrices are the supporters of Lord Do no ugh more, the Earl of West meath, and Sir Edmund Nugent, Bart., and the dexter supporter of Lord Lanes borough is also a cockatrice. The basilisk is the same creature as the cockatrice, and in the arms of the town of Basle (German Basel), is an example of a supporter blazoned as a basilisk. The arms are: "Argent, a crosier sable." The supporter is a basilisk vert, armed and jelloped gules. The supporters of the Plasterers' Company, which were granted with the arms (January 15, 1556), are: "Two opinaci (figures very similar to griffins) vert pursted (? purfled) or, beaked sable, the wings gules." The dexter supporter of the arms of Cape Colony is a "gnu." The zebra, the giraffe, and the okapi are as yet unclaimed as supporters, though the giraffe, under the name of the camelopard, figures in some number of cases as a crest, and there is at least one instance (Kemsley) of a zebra as a crest. The a , though there are some number of cases in which it appears as a crest or a charge, does not yet figure anywhere as a supporter, nor does the mule. The hyena, the sacred cow of India, the bison, the giant-sloth, and the armadillo are all distinctive animals which still remain to be withdrawn from the heraldic "lucky bag" of Garter. The mythical human-faced winged bull of Egyptian mythology, the harpy, and the female centaur would lend themselves well to the character of supporters. Robertson of Struan has no supporters matriculated with his arms, and it is difficult to say for what length of time the supporters now in use have been adopted. But he is chief of his name, and the representative of one of the minor barons, so that there is no doubt that supporters would be matriculated to him if he cared to apply. Those supporters in use, viz. "Dexter, a serpent; sinister, a dove, the heads of each encircled with rays," must surely be no le unique than is the strange compartment, "a wild man lying in chains," which is borne 439 below the arms of Struan Robertson, and which was granted to his ancestor in 1451 for arresting the murderers of King James I. The supporters belonging to the city of Glasgow [26] are also unique, being two salmon, each holding a signet-ring in the mouth. The supporters of the city of Water ford, though not recorded in Ulster's Office, have been long enough in use to ensure their official "confirmation" if a request to this effect were to be properly put forward. They are, on the dexter side a lion, and on the sinister side a dolphin. Two dolphins azure, finned or, are the supporters of the Watermen and Lightermen's Livery Company, and were granted 1655.