Equestrian Seal
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An equestrian seal is a type of seal used in the European
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
, characterized by the depiction of the owner as a mounted warrior in full
armour Armour (Commonwealth English) or armor (American English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, e ...
. Originating in the high medieval period (late 11th to early 12th century), the type was frequently used throughout the 13th to 14th centuries. Continued use into the 15th and 16th centuries was mostly limited to high nobility, especially
royalty Royalty may refer to: * the mystique/prestige bestowed upon monarchs ** one or more monarchs, such as kings, queens, emperors, empresses, princes, princesses, etc. *** royal family, the immediate family of a king or queen-regnant, and sometimes h ...
, while lower nobility switched to the use of simple heraldic seals.


Early examples (before 1170)

Early examples of equestrian seals are known from the second half of the 11th century. The oldest example that may be addressed as an "equestrian seal" is that of
William I of England William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was ...
(c. 1067). Among the oldest extant examples in Germany is the seal of Henry of Laach (c. 1090). The horseman is characterized by the kite shield and a conical helmet, often bearing a banner. This type is continued into the mid-12th century, and late examples of kite shields are found into the 1160s. File:William1 of England.jpg,
William I of England William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was ...
(c. 1067) File:Ralph I of Vermandois.jpg, Ralph I, Count of Vermandois (1116) File:Thibaut Blois.jpg, Thibaut de Blois (1138) File:Fulko jeune.jpg, Fulk, King of Jerusalem (r. 1131–1143) File:Seal Gilbert de Clare.jpeg, Gilbert de Clare (before 1148) File:Seal of Gilbert Fitz Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Pembroke.jpg,
Gilbert de Clare, 1st Earl of Pembroke Gilbert Fitz Gilbert de Clare (6 January 1148), was created Earl of Pembroke in 1138.He was called 'Strongbow' but his son Richard is much more readily associated with that nickname. Life Born at Tonbridge, Gilbert de Clare was the second son o ...
(d. 1148) File:Demay p6.jpg, Enguerrand (Ingelram), count of Saint-Pol (before 1150) File:Segell cera Ramon Berenguer IV.jpg, Ramon Berenguer IV of Barcelona (1150) File:Otakar3 1157.jpg, Ottokar III of Styria (1157) File:Ottokar III of Styria 1160.jpg, Ottokar III of Styria (1160) File:Seal of David, Earl of Huntingdon.jpg, David, Earl of Huntingdon (1160) File:Robert III de Vitré.jpg, Robert III de Vitré (d. 1161) File:Galéran IV de Meulan.jpg, Galéran IV de Meulan (1165)


High medieval seals (1170–1300)

The peak of usage comes with the development of the tradition of
chivalry Chivalry, or the chivalric language, is an informal and varying code of conduct that developed in Europe between 1170 and 1220. It is associated with the medieval Christianity, Christian institution of knighthood, with knights being members of ...
in the high medieval period, during c. the last quarter of the 12th century and throughout the 13th century. Seals of the 1170s to 1190s show shield shapes transitional between the "kite" and the "
heater Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC ) is the use of various technologies to control the temperature, humidity, and purity of the air in an enclosed space. Its goal is to provide thermal comfort and acceptable indoor air quality. ...
" type. Helmet shapes become less conical and more rounded. The horseman is now shown as the prototypical "
knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...
" with a heraldic shield. From about the 1230s, the horse is increasingly shown as wearing a heraldic caparison, and the rider as wearing a
great helm The great helm or heaume, also called pot helm, bucket helm and barrel helm, is a helmet of the High Middle Ages which arose in the late twelfth century in the context of the Crusades and remained in use until the fourteenth century. The barreled ...
. Around the middle of the 13th century, there was a fashion to also represent ladies and ecclesiastics on horseback on their seal, not wearing armour, but, as in the cases of
Joan, Countess of Flanders Joan, often called Joan of Constantinople ( 1199 – 5 December 1244), ruled as Count of Flanders, Countess of Flanders and Count of Hainaut, Hainaut from 1205 (at the age of six) until her death. She was the elder daughter of Baldwin I of Cons ...
(c. 1240), Maria of Brabant, Duchess of Bavaria (c. 1250) and Adelaide of Burgundy, Duchess of Brabant (c. 1260) practicing
falconry Falconry is the hunting of wild animals in their natural state and habitat by means of a trained bird of prey. Small animals are hunted; squirrels and rabbits often fall prey to these birds. Two traditional terms are used to describe a person ...
. File:FilipAls2.jpg, Philip I, Count of Flanders (1170) File:Berthold IV, Duke of Zähringen.jpg, Berthold V, Duke of Zähringen (1187) File:Raimond6Toulouse.jpg,
Raymond VI, Count of Toulouse Raymond VI (; 27 October 1156 – 2 August 1222) was Count of Toulouse and Marquis of Provence from 1194 to 1222. He was also Count of Melgueil (as Raymond IV) from 1173 to 1190. Early life Raymond was born at Saint-Gilles, Gard, the son of ...
(r. 1194-1222) File:Seal - Richard I of England.jpg,
Richard I of England Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199), known as Richard the Lionheart or Richard Cœur de Lion () because of his reputation as a great military leader and warrior, was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ru ...
(1195) File:Thibaut 1198.jpg,
Theobald III, Count of Champagne Theobald III (; 13 May 1179 – 24 May 1201) was Count of Champagne from 1197 to his death. He was designated heir by his older brother Henry II when the latter went to the Holy Land on the Third Crusade, and succeeded him upon his death. He co ...
(1198) File:Geoffroy III du Perche.png, Geoffrey III, Count of Perche (d. 1202) File:Kazimierz I opolski seal 1226.PNG, Casimir I of Opole (1226) File:Jkaub1a.jpg,
James I of Aragon James I the Conqueror ( Catalan/Valencian: ''Jaume I or Jaume el Conqueridor''; Aragonese: ''Chaime I'' ''o Conqueridor''; ; 2 February 1208 – 27 July 1276) was King of Aragon, Count of Barcelona, and Lord of Montpellier from 1213 to 1 ...
(r. 1213–1276) File:Sceau et contre-sceau de Mathieu II de Montmorency.PNG, Matthew II of Montmorency (died 1230). File:NLW Penrice and Margam Deeds 2046 (Front) (8634691430).jpg, Gilbert de Clare, earl of Gloucester and Hertford, c. 1218–1230 File:Gauthier III de Nemours.png, Gauthier III de Nemours (d. 1239) File:Gautier II d'Avesnes.jpg, Walter II of Avesnes (d. 1244) File:AlfonsToulouse.jpg, Alphonse, Count of Poitiers (d. 1271) File:PO2 1273.jpg, Ottokar II Premysl (1273) File:Henry 1 of Navarre.jpg, Henry I of Navarre (r. 1270–1274) File:Alfonso X of Castile.jpg,
Alfonso X of Castile Alfonso X (also known as the Wise, ; 23 November 1221 – 4 April 1284) was King of Castile, Kingdom of León, León and Kingdom of Galicia, Galicia from 1 June 1252 until his death in 1284. During the April 1257 Imperial election, election of 1 ...
(d. 1284) File:Amadeus5.jpg, Amadeus V, Count of Savoy (c. 1285) File:FrLothringen.jpg, Frederick III, Duke of Lorraine (1286)


Late medieval seals (1300–1550)

After 1300, equestrian seals were almost exclusively used by the high nobility, by bearers of the rank of
duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...
or higher. Representations in seals of the 14th century show the nobleman with full heraldic achievements, often carrying a
heraldic flag In heraldry and vexillology, a heraldic flag is a flag containing coat of arms, coats of arms, heraldic badges, or other devices used for personal identification. Heraldic flags include banners, standards, pennons and their variants, gonfalons, ...
, or with a lance in full jousting armour. File:Masovia Seal of Trojden I of Czersk.png, Trojden I, Duke of Masovia (1341) File:Albecht 1.jpg, Albert I of Habsburg (d. 1308) File:Alberrt2.jpg, Albert II, Duke of Austria (d. 1358) File:Robert II (Alba) ii.JPG,
Robert II of Scotland Robert II (2 March 1316 – 19 April 1390) was List of Scottish monarchs, King of Scots from 1371 to his death in 1390. The son of Walter Stewart, 6th High Steward of Scotland, and Marjorie Bruce, Marjorie, daughter of King Robert the Bruce, h ...
(r. 1371–1390) File:Albertus 3.jpg, Albert III, Duke of Austria (d. 1395) File:Franc_à_cheval_1360_73001139.jpg, The so-called ''franc-à-cheval'' was a gold coin valued one ''
livre tournois The (; ; abbreviation: ₶ or £) was one of numerous currencies used in France in the Middle Ages, medieval France, and a unit of account (i.e., a monetary unit used in accounting) used in early modern France. The 1262 monetary reform esta ...
'' minted from 1360. The obverse shows the French king in the style of an equestrian seal. This coin is the origin of the name ''
franc The franc is any of various units of currency. One franc is typically divided into 100 centimes. The name is said to derive from the Latin inscription ''francorum rex'' (King of the Franks) used on early French coins and until the 18th century ...
'' for the French currency. File:Sceau de François II - Duc de Bretagne.png, Francis II, Duke of Brittany (r.1458–1488) File:Albert III, Duke of Saxony.png,
Albert III, Duke of Saxony Albert III () (27 January 144312 September 1500) was a Duke of Saxony. He was nicknamed Albert the Bold or Albert the Courageous and founded the ''Albertine line'' of the House of Wettin. Biography Albert was born in Grimma as the third and y ...
(d. 1500) File:Sceau équestre du duc Antoine de Lorraine.png,
Antoine, Duke of Lorraine Antoine (4 June 148914 June 1544), known as the Good, was Duke of Lorraine from 1508 until his death in 1544. Raised at the French court, Antoine would campaign in Italy twice: once under Louis XII and the other with Francis I. During the G ...
(1508)


Late forms (after 1550)

Late forms were used well into the
early modern period The early modern period is a Periodization, historical period that is defined either as part of or as immediately preceding the modern period, with divisions based primarily on the history of Europe and the broader concept of modernity. There i ...
in France and Germany. Depictions of monarchs in full armour, crested helmets, with lances or heraldic flags etc. fell out of use with the end of the
joust Jousting is a medieval and renaissance martial game or hastilude between two combatants either on horse or on foot. The joust became an iconic characteristic of the knight in Romantic medievalism. The term is derived from Old French , ultim ...
in the early 17th century.
Frederick the Great Frederick II (; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was the monarch of Prussia from 1740 until his death in 1786. He was the last Hohenzollern monarch titled ''King in Prussia'', declaring himself ''King of Prussia'' after annexing Royal Prussia ...
of Prussia used a ''Majestätssiegel'' which depicted him on horseback in 1772 (albeit no longer depicted as a fully armored knight but as a military commander). The reverse of the Great Seal of
Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland from 27 March 1625 until Execution of Charles I, his execution in 1649. Charles was born ...
(1627) shows the monarch in full gallop, wearing a fanciful classicist armour, accompanied by a hunting dog. The British monarchs from 1707 onward continued the convention of depicting the seated and crowned monarch on the obverse, and the monarch on horseback on the reverse. This is the case also for the queen regnants ( Great Seal of Queen Anne,
Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...
,
Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
), who are depicted in sidesaddle. In 1976,
Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
minted a commemorative gold coin (13.5g 90% Au) on the occasion of the millennial anniversary of the Babenberg dynasty ( Leopold I, Margrave of Austria), known as the '' Babenberger-Bundesgoldmünze''. The obverse of this coin was designed in the style of a medieval equestrian seal (with the addition of an alpine panorama).


Modern heraldic forms

In heraldic art, influenced by the equestrian seals, horsemen are a fairly common symbol. Two widely popular forms that the horseman takes is as the '' Pahonia'' and Saint George fighting the dragon. While these symbols are used in various coats of arms, they are arguably most famous as the
Coat of arms of Lithuania The coat of arms of Lithuania features an armoured knight on horseback, wielding a sword and carrying a shield with a Jagiellonian cross. This emblem is known as ''Vytis'' (). Since the early 15th century, it has served as the official coat of ...
and the
Coat of arms of Moscow The coat of arms of Moscow depicts a horseman with a spear in his hand slaying a basilisk and is identified with Saint George and the Dragon. The heraldic emblem of Moscow has been an integral part of the coat of arms of Russia since the 16th cen ...
respectively. File:Coat of arms of Lithuania.svg, Modern
coat of arms of Lithuania The coat of arms of Lithuania features an armoured knight on horseback, wielding a sword and carrying a shield with a Jagiellonian cross. This emblem is known as ''Vytis'' (). Since the early 15th century, it has served as the official coat of ...
File:Coat of arms of Belarus (1991–1995).svg, Modern alternative national emblem of Belarus File:Coat of Arms of Moscow.svg, Saint George on horseback on the coat of arms of
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
File:Coat of Arms of the Russian Federation.svg, Saing George on horseback on the coat of arms of
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...


See also

* History of heraldry * Pahonia


References

*Sandra Hindman, ''Sealed in Parchment: Rereadings of Knighthood in the Illuminated Manuscripts of Chretien de Troyes'' (1994), 118ff. *Phillipp R. Schofield, ''Seals and their Context in the Middle Ages'' (2015) *"Les Sceaux du Moyen-Âge", in: ''Mémoires de la Société nationale des Antiquaires de France ''XXXVII. *John McEwan, "Equestrian Seals in the Late Twelfth and Early Thirteenth Centuries", ''Essays in Medieval Studies'' 22 (2005), 77-93, . *Jean-François Nieus
"Early Aristocratic Seals"
in: E. Van Houts (ed.), ''Anglo-Norman Studies XXXVIII: Proceedings of the Battle Conference 2015'' (2016). * Phillipp R. Schofield, ''Seals and their Context in the Middle Ages'' (2015)
38ff


External links

*http://medievalwriting.50megs.com/decoration/seal3.htm *http://www.hubert-herald.nl/EspanCatalunya.htm {{Authority control Seals (insignia) Heraldry Chivalry Medieval art