Blazons & How Heralds Describe Coats of Arms

Blazons are the written descriptions of coats of arms. Think of a blazon as the instruction manual for a shield: a precise, centuries-old way of describing every color, shape, and symbol so it can be faithfully reproduced.

Artists can interpret the shield in different styles, but as long as the blazon stays the same, the arms stay the same. 

The text locks the design in place forever, allowing a shield to be accurately reproduced across countries, centuries, and artistic trends. It’s a system built to last. And it has!

The Language of Heraldry: How Blazons Work

Originally, blazons needed to be precise because they were used to identify knights on the battlefield and ensure accurate reproduction by artists.

Blazons are visual codes of identity, history, and symbolism. It’s how heralds ensure that every lion, rose, or chevron is described accurately so they can be reproduced centuries later.

Heralds describe coats of arms by breaking them into clear components:

1. The Field – the background color or pattern (e.g., Argent = white, Gules = red).

2. Charges – symbols like animals, objects, or geometric designs.

3. Positioning – where each charge sits on the shield (chief, base, dexter, sinister, fess point).

4. Tinctures – the colors of charges and patterns, described with specific terms.

5. Crests and supporters – elements above or beside the shield, also described accurately.

By following these conventions, heralds ensure the coat of arms is recorded accurately, no matter where or when someone tries to reproduce it.

If you’ve ever wanted to find your family crest, understanding blazons is the first step because the description is what allows you to identify your ancestral arms.

How to Read a Blazon: Step-by-Step Guide with a Real Example

To make things simple, let’s break down a real example: Franklin D. Roosevelt’s coat of arms. We’ll walk through each part, explain the terms, and show you how heralds use words to describe symbols, colors, and positions with perfect clarity.

Blazon: Argent three roses one in pale and two in saltire Gules barbed, seeded, slipped and leaved proper. 

• Argent = silver / white

• Gules = red

His motto: Qui plantavit curabit (“He who planted will preserve/take care of what he planted”)

Breaking Down the Blazon (Step-by-Step)

1. Field (Background)

• Argent indicates the shield’s background is white/silver.

• The field is the “stage” where all the heraldic symbols appear.

2. Charges (Symbols on the Shield)

• Three roses → three rose flowers appear on the shield.

Placement:

• One in pale → one rose is vertically centered (up and down the middle).

• Two in saltire → the other two form an X-shape, placed diagonally around the center rose.

Color & Details:

• Gules → the roses are red.

• Barbed → green sepals under the petals

• Seeded → yellow/gold centers

• Slipped → each rose has a small stem

• Leaved proper → leaves in their natural green

Without them, the design could be misinterpreted, simplified, or accidentally altered in a way the family never intended.

3. Crest (Above the Shield)

• The wreath (torse) is Argent and Gules → twisted silver/white and red cloth.

• From the wreath rise three ostrich plumes, each per pale Gules and Argent → divided vertically into red on one half and white on the other.

Family crests often represented personal traits, accomplishments, or family stories. In Roosevelt’s case, the plumes mirror the colors of the shield and echo older Roosevelt family heraldry traced back to Dutch ancestors.

Blazon Language: A Mini Cheat Sheet

Here are a few terms you’ll encounter:

Once you know these basics, blazon reading will be like following a treasure map as every word points you to the next element.

If you’re trying to find your family crest, knowing these terms will make it much easier to recognize and interpret historical records.

What If You Find a Blazon in Your Family’s Records?

Here’s where things get exciting for readers: once you understand how blazons work, you can actually decode the ones you might stumble upon in old family albums, genealogy notes, or handwritten documents passed down through generations.

A lot of families discover something like:

“Per chevron Argent and Sable three mullets Or”

… and think, “Okay, but what does that look like?”

This is exactly where knowing the language of heraldry becomes useful!

And if you want to see that blazon come to life, or even start sketching out a version of your own coat of arms, you can try our free coat of arms maker. 

It lets you experiment with fields, charges, colors, and layouts!

Common Mistakes Beginners Make When Reading Blazons

If you’re decoding your first few coats of arms, you’re not alone! Most beginners run into the same snags. 

Here are the big ones to watch out for:

1. Reading it like a normal sentence

Blazons aren’t read left-to-right like a painting description. Heralds follow a fixed sequence:
Field → Charges → Position → Tinctures → Details.
Once you internalize that order, the descriptions stop feeling cryptic.

2. Mixing up left and right

A classic beginner mistake: thinking dexter is the viewer’s right. It’s not.
Dexter = the shield-bearer’s right
Sinister = the shield-bearer’s left
So when you’re looking at a shield, everything is reversed.

3. Confusing charges and ordinaries

Charges = animals, objects, plants, mythical creatures
Ordinaries = geometric shapes (bend, fess, chevron, pale, etc.)
They behave differently in blazoning, so mixing them up can change the entire layout.

4. Assuming symbols always have universal meanings

A lion can mean courage, but it might also be a family pun, a regional reference, or simply a popular medieval motif. Context matters.

Bringing Blazons to Life

Suddenly, old descriptions in history books, genealogy papers, or even museum plaques make perfect sense. And even better: you start recognizing patterns, like lions showing courage, roses symbolizing hope, and chevrons hinting at protection or building.

Design Your Own Coat of Arms for free

Ready to see your own design come to life? Try our our free coat of arms maker here -  choose fields, charges, and patterns to create something personal yet historically inspired.

 

 

 

 

Image Credits:

Museu Paulista via Wikimedia Commons, source

Colombières 1639 book via Wikimedia Commons, source

Coat of Arms of Franklin Roosevelt via Wikimedia Commons, source

Albrecht Altdorfer 039 via Wikimedia Commons, source