Baton sinister
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Baton sinister is a charge used in heraldry.
Contents |
[edit] Heraldic charge
It is a diminutive of the bend sinister and constitutes a narrow strip that runs from the upper right to the lower left of a coat of arms. It has been traditionally used as an indicator of an illegitimate birth in the family line. Sinister, in this case, does not have a negative connotation, it is merely a directional indicator.
The baton sinister can be seen in the arms of the Duke of Grafton who is a descendant of an illegitimate son of King Charles II of England. Today, the College of Arms in England uses a bordure wavy to mark an armiger as illegitimate. The Court of the Lord Lyon in Scotland uses a bordure gobony to denote the same.
[edit] Bar sinister
Sir Walter Scott is credited with corrupting this phrase into the bar sinister of literature. In heraldic terms, the bar is actually a horizontal line without any sinister versions. In literature, the phrase is often used to represent bastardy in coats of arms.
A Bar Sinister may also refer to a symbol commonly used in signs. These include the common "No Smoking" signs. In its modern form it is a red circle with a diagonal line through it. It prohibits the use of the symbol that is underneath it.
[edit] External links
- Baton sinister in the arms of the Duke of Grafton
- Society for Creative Anachronism
- Pembley's Dictionary of Heraldry
[edit] References
- This article incorporates text from the public domain 1907 edition of The Nuttall Encyclopædia.
- Stephen Friar, Ed. A Dictionary of Heraldry. (Harmony Books, New York: 1987).
