Abbey Museum Heraldry T-Shirt

The art and science of devising, displaying, and granting armorial insignia and of tracing and recording genealogies is called heraldry.

Heraldry is about showing people who you are. When knights began to wear helmets which covered their faces, they couldn't be recognised. Then they began to paint unique combinations of colours, shapes and animals, called their 'arms', on their shields and banners.

Featuring 23 armorial shields from the stained glass in the Abbey Church, these coats of arms span nearly 600 years of history. 

Some rules of Heraldry:

Each coat of arms should be unique and distinguishable at a distance. Cover the shield in certain colours and in certain ways unless it cannot be avoided by clashing with another.