|
Occitan Cross
The Occitan cross (also called ''cross of Occitania'', ''cross of Languedoc'', ''cross of Toulouse''; heraldically ''cross cleché, pommetty and voided'') is a heraldic cross, today chiefly used as a symbol of Occitania. The design was probably first used in the coat of arms of the counts of Forcalquier (in modern Provence), in the 12th century, and by the counts of Toulouse in their capacity as Marquises of Provence, on 13th century coins and seals. It later spread to the other provinces of Occitania, namely Provence, Guyenne, Gascony, Dauphiné, Auvergne and Limousin. A yellow Occitan cross on a blood-red background with the seven-armed golden star of the Felibritge makes up the flag of modern-day Occitania. It can also be found in the emblems of Midi-Pyrénées, Languedoc-Roussillon and Hautes-Alpes, among many others, as well as in cemeteries and at country crossroads. The blazon of the modern emblem is ''gules, a cross cleché'' (or: '' pattée'') ''pommettée voided or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cleché
In heraldry, a cross (or other ordinary) cleché, or clechée, flares out at the ends in a shape resembling the bow of an old-fashioned key ( French ''clé''). An example is the Occitan Cross in the coat of arms of the counts of Toulouse The count of Toulouse ( oc, comte de Tolosa, french: comte de Toulouse) was the ruler of Toulouse during the 8th to 13th centuries. Originating as vassals of the Frankish kings, the hereditary counts ruled the city of Toulouse and its surroundin ...: '' Gules, a cross cléchée, pommetty and voided Or''. (Because this Occitan Cross is also ''voided'' (hollow), some writers have mistakenly taken the term ''cléché'' to be a synonym of ''voided'' or to include voiding as a defining feature.) See also * Cercelée, a similar cross References {{DEFAULTSORT:Cleche Crosses in heraldry ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cathar Cross
In the Middle Ages, the Cathar yellow cross was a distinguishing mark worn by repentant Cathars, who were ordered to wear it by the Roman Catholic Church. Background Catharism was a religious movement with dualistic and Gnostic elements that appeared in the Languedoc region of France around the middle of the 12th century. Cathars were dualist in their beliefs, and the Catholic symbol of the crucifix was, to the Cathars, a negative symbol. In the words of one 14th century Cathar Perfect Pierre Authié: ...just as a man should with an axe break the gallows on which his father was hanged, so you ought to try and break crucifixes, because Christ was suspended from it, albeit only in seeming. The Albigensian Heresy and the Inquisition The office of the Inquisition was formulated in response to Catharism, and a crusade was ultimately declared against Catharism. Repentant first offenders (who admitted to having been Cathars), when released on licence by the inquisition were order ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The visual depiction of a coat of arms or flag has traditionally had considerable latitude in design, but a verbal blazon specifies the essentially distinctive elements. A coat of arms or flag is therefore primarily defined not by a picture but rather by the wording of its blazon (though in modern usage flags are often additionally and more precisely defined using geometrical specifications). ''Blazon'' is also the specialized language in which a blazon is written, and, as a verb, the act of writing such a description. ''Blazonry'' is the art, craft or practice of creating a blazon. The language employed in ''blazonry'' has its own vocabulary, grammar and syntax, which becomes essential for comprehension when blazoning a complex coat of arms. Ot ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nestorian Cross
The Nestorian Cross is associated with the Church of the East. It is composed of a cross similar to the Maltese cross, with four arms of roughly equal length which narrow in width towards the center of the cross. In Eastern Christian art in China, these crosses are sometimes simplified and depicted as resting on a lotus flower or on a stylized cloud. Cross of the Assyrian Church of the East The cross of the Assyrian Church of the East has three dots lining the left cross-bar, three dots lining the right cross-bar, two dots lining the top bar, and one dot on the bottom bar. These nine dots represent the nine orders of ministry within the church. Between the two dots on the top bar is a crown with three prongs, representing the Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F .. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sun Cross
A sun cross, solar cross, or wheel cross is a solar symbol consisting of an equilateral cross inside a circle. The design is frequently found in the symbolism of prehistoric cultures, particularly during the Neolithic to Bronze Age periods of European prehistory. The symbol's ubiquity and apparent importance in prehistoric religion have given rise to its interpretation as a solar symbol, whence the modern English term "sun cross" (a calque of german: Sonnenkreuz). The symbol means ''village'' in Ancient Egyptian ( Gardiner symbol O49). The same symbol is in use as a modern astronomical symbol representing the Earth rather than the Sun. In pharmacy, sun cross symbol represents various/miscellaneous drugs. After World War II, variants of the symbol became associated with neo-Nazi and white supremacist movements. Interpretation as solar symbol The interpretation of the simple equilateral cross as a solar symbol in Bronze Age religion was widespread in 19th-century scholars ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Venasque
Venasque (; oc, Venasca; la, Vindasca) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. The area has many tourist attractions, such as the nearby Mount Vaucluse, a park with several tennis courts, and many open areas. The town of Venasque stands on a hill, surrounded on all sides by ramparts in various states of disrepair. It is home to many notable foreigners, such as Darius Brubeck. It has a beautiful forest surrounding it, with picturesque trails and several shepherds' dwellings made out of rocks piled together to create domed huts. History In the high middle ages Venasque was the capital of the Comtat Venaissin, which became a possession of the Holy See in 1271. In 1320 Venasque was replaced as capital of the Comtat by Carpentras. Papal control of the Comtat continued until the 1790s, when it was annexed by France and placed within a new ''département'' of the Vaucluse, although the papacy did not recognise the an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Durance
The Durance (; ''Durença'' in the Occitan classical norm or ''Durènço'' in the Mistralian norm) is a major river in Southeastern France. A left tributary of the Rhône, it is long. Its drainage basin is .Bassin versant : Durance (La) Observatoire Régional Eau et Milieux Aquatiques en PACA Its source is in the southwestern part of the , in the ski resort near ; it flows southwest through the following [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marquisate Of Provence
The land of Provence has a history quite separate from that of any of the larger nations of Europe. Its independent existence has its origins in the frontier nature of the dukedom in Merovingian Gaul. In this position, influenced and affected by several different cultures on different sides, the Provençals maintained a unity which was reinforced when the region was made a separate kingdom during the Carolingian decline of the later ninth century. Provence was eventually joined to the other Burgundian kingdom, but it remained ruled by its own powerful, and largely independent, counts. In the eleventh century, Provence became disputed between the traditional line and the counts of Toulouse, who claimed the title of "Margrave of Provence". In the High Middle Ages, the title of Count of Provence belonged to local families of Frankish origin, to the House of Barcelona, to the House of Anjou and to a cadet branch of the House of Valois. After 1032, the county was part of the Holy Rom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heraldry
Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branch of heraldry, concerns the design and transmission of the heraldic achievement. The achievement, or armorial bearings usually includes a coat of arms on a shield, helmet and crest, together with any accompanying devices, such as supporters, badges, heraldic banners and mottoes. Although the use of various devices to signify individuals and groups goes back to antiquity, both the form and use of such devices varied widely, as the concept of regular, hereditary designs, constituting the distinguishing feature of heraldry, did not develop until the High Middle Ages. It is often claimed that the use of helmets with face guards during this period made it difficult to recognize one's commanders in the field when large armies gathered together ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Raymond V Of Toulouse
Raymond V ( oc, Ramon; c. 1134 – c. 1194) was Count of Toulouse from 1148 until his death in 1194. He was the son of Alphonse I of Toulouse and Faydida of Provence. Alphonse took his son with him on the Second Crusade in 1147. When Alphonse died in Caesarea in 1148, the county of Toulouse passed to his son Raymond, then aged 14. The young count was honoured by Rorgo Fretellus, archdeacon of Nazareth, who dedicated a new edition of his ''Description of the Holy Places'' to him. As count, Raymond permitted the first assembly of townsmen in Toulouse, the origin of the later capitouls. In 1165, in the town of Lombers, the Bishop of Albi, attended by both clerics and members of the nobility, including Constance, the wife of Raymond V, interrogated and debated with members of an alleged heretical sect. Calling themselves "Good Men", this group held beliefs similar to those of Henry of Lausanne and Peter of Bruys as well as indicating Cathar influence. While the Good Men de ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Forcalquier
Forcalquier (; oc, Forcauquier, ) is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France. Forcalquier is located between the Lure and Luberon mountain ranges, about south of Sisteron and west of the Durance river. During the Middle Ages it was the capital of Haute-Provence. History ''Furnus Calcarius'' was the Latin name, from the lime kilns used in Roman times. (A Roman bridge still stands in the valley to the south of the town.) Its Provençal name is ''Fourcauquié''. At the end of the 11th century, a family of the counts of Provence created the county of Forcalquier. During this time, the town of Forcalquier was the capital of Haute Provence along the Durance, which included the towns of Manosque, Sisteron, Gap and Embrun. Forcalquier minted its own currency, and its church was elevated to the status of a "concathedral". The counts of Forcalquier grew to a power that could defy the counts of Provence. Rivalry ended in 1195 when Gersende de S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.jpg "Click for more on -> Nestorian Cross")
