Cleché

In heraldry, a cross (or other ordinary) cleché, or clechée, flares out at the tips in a shape resembling the handle of an old-fashioned key (French clé).[1] The outstanding example is the Occitan cross, in the coat of arms of the counts of Toulouse: Gules, a cross cléchée, pommetty and voided Or. Because this cross is also voided (hollow), some writers[2] have taken the term cléché either to be a synonym of voided or to include voiding as a defining feature.

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

See Also

References

  1. ^ J. B. Rietstap, Armorial General, glossary s.v. croix cléchée (p. xix): "Se dit des arrondissements de la croix de Toulouse, dont les quatre extrémités sont faites comme les anneaux des clés."
  2. ^ Pimbley's Dictionary of Heraldry