Tincture

The name given to the metals, colours and furs used in heraldry and classed as follows:

Metal	Heraldic Name	Abbreviation	Hatching or engraved symbol
Gold	Or	-	Small dots.
Silver	Argent	arg	A plain white surface.

Colour	Heraldic Name	Abbreviation	Hatching or engraved symbol
Blue	Azure	az	Lines in fess (Horizontal lines).
Red	Gules	gu	Lines in pale (Vertical lines).
Black	Sable	sa	Lines in pale intersected by lines in fess (Crossed vertical and horizontal lines).
Green	Vert (Sinople)	-	Lines in bend (Diagonal lines from dexter to sinister).
Purple	Purpure	purp	Lines in bend sinister (Diagonal lines from sinister to dexter) .
*Orange Brown	Tenné	-	Lines in bend intersected by lines in pale (Diagonal lines from sinister to dexter crossing vertical ones)
*Dark Brown	Murrey	-	Lines intersected in saltire (Diagonal lines from dexter to sinister and from sinister to dexter).
*Blood-Colour	Sanguine	-	Lines in bend intersected by lines in fess (Diagonal lines from sinister to dexter crossing horizontal ones)

* Used on the continent but less frequently in English heraldry, where these colours were generally regarded as stains. In most earlier heraldic works, murrey and sanguine were considered synonymous.

Fur	Description
Ermine	A s em é of spots sa on a field arg. Its reverse is ermines
Ermines	The reverse of ermine, being a sem é of spots arg on a field sa . Sometimes termed counter-ermine.
Erminites	A variety of ermine with one red hair on each side of the spots.
Erminois	A sem é of spots sa on a field o r. Its reverse is pean
Vair	Alternate rows of alternate argent and azure hides formed like little bell-shaped shields, the alternate shield reversed and the alternate row also reversed.
Vairé	Vair but with tinctures other than arg and az, when the tinctures must be specified.
Counter-vair	A variety of vair but with the little shields varied so that those of the same tincture are placed base against base and point against point.
Vair-en-point	Another variety of vair, the point of one little shield being placed opposite to the base of the one below.
Pean	The reverse of erminois, being a sem é of spots or on a field sa.
Potent, Potence	Similar to vair but with potents, or little crutches, instead of shields. Tinctures other than arg and az must also be specified.
Counter-Potent	A variety of potent, but with the little crutches varied so that those of the same tincture are placed base against base and point against point.

General Rules in the application of tinctures

1. Metals take precedence over colours.

2. Metal may not be placed upon metal, nor colour upon colour.

Historical Note

Some fanciful heralds of former times, seemingly for the greater distinction and honour of the bearer, used to call to their aid not only the heavenly bodies to describe the tinctures of the bearings of sovereign princes but precious stones for the nobility. They even carried their imagination still further by attributing to each planet, celestial sign, precious stone, metal and colour, the virtues which they represent, as well as the months, days, flowers, elements, seasons and numbers to be understood by them. Without subscribing to these strange whims and fancies, or wishing to record them as legitimate heraldic terms, but merely to show the extravagant enthusiasm with which heraldry has sometimes been followed, a table of these appellations is annexed to satisfy the curious. Peacham, in his Complete Gentleman, mentions that in the time of Henry V, a Dutchman blazoned by the principal parts of a man�s body, and one Malorques, a Frenchman, by flowers. Earlier still, an Englishman named Fauchon in the time of Edward III, emblazoned arms by the days of the week. But whatever marks of respect to sovereigns and nobles such variations in the blazoning of arms might have been intended to carry, the absurdities and confusion it was likely to introduce caused it to be soon abandoned, the heralds of most countries adhering to the more simple mode of blazon by metals and colours.

Colours

Planets

Precious Stones

Virtues

Celestial Signs

Months

Days

Ages

Flowers & Plants

Elements

Seasons

Complexions