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A console in heraldry is a decorative frame or support surrounding a heraldic shield or escutcheon.
The term derives from the compound
A console in heraldry is a decorative frame or support surrounding a heraldic shield or escutcheon.
The term derives from the compound Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
verb ''consolor'' "to alleviate, lighten", from the verb ''solor'', "to assuage, soothe, relieve, mitigate", plus the preposition ''con/com/cum'', "with".Cassell's Latin Dictionary, Marchant, J.R.V, & Charles, Joseph F., (Eds.), Revised Edition, 1928 It thus serves to add interest to and mitigate the harshness of the stark outline of the shield, were used primarily for decorative purposes, rather than for its original purpose of identifying a knight
A knight is a person granted an honorary title of 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. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...
in battle. The term "console" in architecture
Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...
is generally used for elements which provide support, such as corbels on a console table
A console table is a table whose top surface is supported by corbels or brackets rather than by the usual four legs. It is thus similar to a supported shelf and is not designed to serve as a stand-alone surface. It is frequently used as pier t ...
.
See also
*Cartouche (design)
A cartouche (also cartouch) is an oval or oblong design with a slightly convex surface, typically edged with ornamental scrollwork. It is used to hold a painted or low-relief design. Since the early 16th century, the cartouche is a scrolling fram ...
– a decorative frame or support, mainly in architecture
* Scrollwork
The scroll in art is an element of ornament and graphic design featuring spirals and rolling incomplete circle motifs, some of which resemble the edge-on view of a book or document in scroll form, though many types are plant-scrolls, which l ...
, Strapwork
In the history of art and design, strapwork is the use of stylised representations in ornament of ribbon-like forms. These may loosely imitate leather straps, parchment or metal cut into elaborate shapes, with piercings, and often interwoven in ...
– both similar ornaments
References
External links
* {{Heraldry-stub Heraldry Visual motifs