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Those entitled to bear an authentic coat of arms, inherited,
matriculated from an armigerous ancestor, or by way of a new grant of
arms through a recognized heraldic authority such as the Lord Lyon King
of Arms in Scotland, The College of Arms in England, or the Canadian
Heraldic Authority, have many options as to how their arms may be
displayed.
One of the more popular uses for an authentic coat of arms is the
heraldic bookplate. During our lifetime many of us collect books and
retain those of special interest in a personal library. Such favourite
books are usually passed down to our descendants, and what better way is
there to make them aware of the original owner than the heraldic
bookplate incorporating the personal arms of an ancestor?
One of my favourite books is A Child’s Garden of Verses by Robert Louis
Stevenson, given to me by my Godmother when I was six and just learning
to read. The book was a gift during the time I was confined to the
Isolation Ward at Vancouver General Hospital for six weeks with Scarlet
Fever, and not allowed visitors. The poems kept me fascinated, and I
read them often. Sadly, the original book had to be destroyed on my
release from hospital, but I was given another copy that I still have
and greatly treasure. It was one of the first of my many treasured books
to have my heraldic bookplate installed on the flyleaf.
The full achievement of a coat of arms is painted in colour by the
heraldic artist, while the heraldic bookplate is generally drawn in
black and white. I am fortunate to be one of the 231 people to have one
of the bookplates by renowned Canadian heraldic artist Gordon Macpherson
of Burlington, Ontario. Gordon is a self-taught amateur heraldic artist
who serves as Niagara Herald Extraordinary with the Canadian Heraldic
Authority. Gordon was recently appointed a Member of the Order of
Canada in recognition of his more than 60 years of outstanding
contributions to heraldic art in Canada. He was also honoured with a
display of his bookplates, arranged by the Toronto Branch Royal Heraldry
Society of Canada, followed by a dinner at Hart House, University of
Toronto. Hart House has many fine examples of Canadian heraldry in
armorial murals by another renowned Canadian, Scott Carter, whose work
inspired Gordon Macpherson as a young student at U. of Toronto. The
exhibit catalogue of Armorial Bookplates by Roderick Gordon Murdoch
Macpherson sold out quickly, and my signed copy has been added to my
small collection of heraldry books.
Heraldic bookplates have been used by armigers for many years and are
often seen in rare book collections in libraries, the books having been
donated from private collections. The small library at my Toronto club,
Royal Canadian Military Institute, includes many books on military
history, donated by the families of deceased members, and many have the
heraldic bookplates from the original owner. The Baldwin Room for rare
books in Toronto Reference Library, and many of the books in the
Scottish Collection in the library at University of Guelph, Ontario have
heraldic bookplates of the original owner. |
