Page:A Complete Guide to Heraldry.djvu/164

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140
A COMPLETE GUIDE TO HERALDRY

the bordure compony (Fig. 223), which has been used occasionally for the same purpose in England, but the bordures added to indicate cadency and the various marks to indicate illegitimacy will be discussed in later chapters. The difference should here be observed between the bordure compony (Fig. 223), which means illegitimacy; the bordure counter compony (Fig. 224), which may or may not have that meaning; and the bordure chequy (Fig. 225), which certainly has no relation to bastardy. In the two former the panes run with the shield, in the latter the chequers do not. Whilst the bordure as a mark of cadency or illegitimacy surrounds the whole shield, being superimposed upon even the chief and canton, a bordure when merely a charge gives way to both.

Fig. 220.—Bordure quarterly.
Fig. 220.—Bordure quarterly.

Fig. 220.—Bordure quarterly.

Fig. 221.—Bordure gyronny.
Fig. 221.—Bordure gyronny.

Fig. 221.—Bordure gyronny.

Fig. 222.—Bordure tierced in pairle.
Fig. 222.—Bordure tierced in pairle.

Fig. 222.—Bordure tierced in pairle.

Fig. 223.—Bordure compony.
Fig. 223.—Bordure compony.

Fig. 223.—Bordure compony.

Fig. 224.—Bordure counter compony.
Fig. 224.—Bordure counter compony.

Fig. 224.—Bordure counter compony.

Fig. 225.—Bordure chequy.
Fig. 225.—Bordure chequy.

Fig. 225.—Bordure chequy.

A certain rule regarding the bordure is the sole remaining instance in modern heraldry of the formerly recognised practice of conjoining two coats of arms (which it might be necessary to marshal together) by "dimidiation" instead of using our present-day method of impalement. To dimidiate two coats of arms, the dexter half of one shield was conjoined to the sinister half of the other. The objections to such a practice, however, soon made themselves apparent (e.g. a dimidiated chevron was scarcely distinguishable from a bend), and the "dimidiation" of arms was quickly abandoned in favour of