Family Crest Interpretation

[nirathak]

Hi,

For as long as I can remember, there has been a description of my family's coat of arms hanging on the wall in my house. However, while there is a description, there is no actual image, and as the description is written in very old English, I am having trouble interpreting it. Can anyone help?

The descriptions are as follows:

Blazon of Arms: "Azure on a chevron engrailed argent three bucks' heads couped gules a chief per fess ermines and ermine."

Crest: "A dexter hand embowed habited ermines, the cuff argent holding in the hand proper a like buck's head."

Thanks! An interpretation would be most welcome, and better yet, if anyone is able to draw it and post a picture, that would really be appreciated!

[Flattybasher9]

A surname and location would probably help.

Malky

[goldie61]

The description of the Blazon and Crest are written in the langusge of heraldry - not “very old English” - many of the terms are French words.


Blazon = shield
Azure = blue
Argent = silver
A chevron engrailed = a chevron having semicircular indentations along the edge,
so a ‘chevron engrailed argent’ is a silver chevron with semicircular indentations, on the blue background.
Couped = cut off at the neck
Gules = red
So 3 red bucks’ heads.
A chief = a split off part of the background at the top of the shield
Per fess = at the bottom pointed end of the shield shape
Ermine is the pattern (properly called a ‘tincture’ and not a ‘pattern’).
Ermine is the coat of the stoat in its winter colours - white and black.
You can get this pattern with black on white, and also with white on black, so I think the section is divided into 2, with each the reverse pattern.

So I read it you have a blue shield with a wavy lined silver chevron.
3 red bucks heads along the top,
A section at the bottom divided into two, one black on white ermine pattern, and the other white on black.

(I am quite willing to be corrected by those with more knowledge of heraldry than I have!).

Here is an example of a chevron engrailed, and ermine tincture (not your colour of chevron, but gives you the idea).

[KGarrad]

The family is Woodruff, or Woodroffe, of Norfolk.

From "The Church Heraldry of Norfolk . . ."
It can be found in St Andrews Church, Norwich - as a shield in a window in the South Aisle.


EDIT:
From Burke's General Armory
Woodroflfe (St. Edmundsbury, co. Suffolk). Az. on a chev. engr. ar. three bucks' heads couped gu. a chief per fess ermines and erm.
Crest—A dexter arm embowed habited ermines, the cuff ar. holding in the hand ppr. a like buck's 'lead.

[KGarrad]

First, a coat of Arms does NOT belong to a family name.
It is/was designed for a particular individual, and only his direct (usually) male descendants have a right to bear the arms.

Using DrawShield, I tried creating the CoA.
It didn't like the bucks heads!

[Mart 'n' Al]

KGarrad, your link to Draw Shield was very interesting. The results were a little disappointing. I remember looking into a blazon interpreter quite a few years ago, and the technology surprisingly doesn't seem to have improved very much. However I'm very pleased to be aware of it. Thanks again.

Martin