Why does a lion stand on his hind legs? What did a crusader's cross mean? An 1886 guide that teaches heraldry as bedtime stories — plus: design your own coat of arms.

Blazon Your Own Arms

The Dame teaches the whole grammar of a coat of arms: the field and its tinctures, the ordinaries — those bold bands of honor — and the charges that ride upon them. Now use it. Choose below and the machine will draw your shield and pronounce its blazon, the sentence from which any herald could paint your arms sight unseen. Mind the rule of tincture: never metal upon metal, nor colour upon colour.

Rights & ReuseThe complete text of Dame Heraldry (1886) is in the public domain in the United States — like all works published before 1928 — and is free to read, download, quote, teach from, and reuse. This digital edition (its transcription, restored images, and site design) is © 2026 PhotoOpAI, and any editorial commentary we add is clearly marked as ours; the underlying public-domain text carries no such restriction.