Bordure

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In heraldry, a bordure is a contrasting border around a shield, traditionally one-sixth as wide as the shield itself. It encloses the whole shield, with two exceptions:

• When two coats of arms are combined by dimidiation or impalement, it is supposed to be a rule that the bordure does not run along the partition line. Some writers state that there is an exception to this rule when the bordure is charged with a number of charges (see below) that it would not be possible to accurately number were the rule followed.
• If a chief is added to a coat that previously had a bordure, the chief overlies the bordure.

Like any heraldic ordinary, a bordure may be of a single tincture or divided; its edge may be straight or otherwise (though some lines cannot be applied to the bordure, such as dancetty); and it may be charged with smaller figures. These variations are effectively exploited in the Scottish system of cadency.

There is no "diminutive" (a charge of the same shape but smaller or narrower) of the bordure, but a narrower bordure can be constructed by the blazon saying "a bordure diminished," though there is one example in blazon of "a narrow bordure."[1]

This article incorporates content from the 1728 Cyclopaedia, a publication in the public domain.