A banderole (, "little banner") is a comparatively small but long flag, historically used by knights and on ships, and as a heraldic device for representing

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

s. Bannerol, in its main uses is the same as banderole, and is the term especially applied to banners about a yard square carried at the funerals of great men and placed over the tomb. Often it commemorated a particular exploit of the person bearing the

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

. Banderole (a wooden stick having one pointed end covered with metallic shoe) is used in conventional military survey. It's used to depict various stations established during carrying the survey forward. Double banderole are used to erect Survey Beacon.

Knights, bishops and ships

A banderole is a small flag or streamer carried on the lance of 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 ...

, or a long narrow flag, with cleft end flying from the mast-head of a ship in battle. Meuble Lion de gueule tenant une banderole

In heraldry, a banderole is a streamer hanging from beneath the crook of a bishop's crosier and folding over the staff, and for other small streamers or ribbons.

Art and architecture

The term is also used in

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

and

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 ...

for a

speech scroll In art history a speech scroll (also called a banderole or phylactery) is an illustrative device denoting speech, song, or other types of sound. Developed independently on two continents, the device was in use by artists within Mesoamerican cult ...

or streamer, representing a roll of

parchment Parchment is a writing material made from specially prepared untanned skins of animals—primarily sheep, calves, and goats. It has been used as a writing medium for over two millennia. Vellum is a finer quality parchment made from the skins o ...

carried by or surrounding a figure or object, for bearing an inscription, mainly during the medieval and Renaissance periods. In particular banderoles were used as attributes for Old Testament

prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the s ...

s, as may be seen in the ''

Santa Trinita Maestà The ''Santa Trinita Maestà'' (Italian: ''Maestà di Santa Trinita'') is a panel painting by the Italian medieval artist Cimabue, dating to c. 1290-1300. Originally painted for the church of Santa Trinita, Florence, where it remained until 1471 ...

'' by

Cimabue Cimabue (; ; – 1302), Translated with an introduction and notes by J.C. and P Bondanella. Oxford: Oxford University Press (Oxford World’s Classics), 1991, pp. 7–14. . also known as Cenni di Pepo or Cenni di Pepi, was an Italian painter ...

, (

Uffizi The Uffizi Gallery (; it, Galleria degli Uffizi, italic=no, ) is a prominent art museum located adjacent to the Piazza della Signoria in the Historic Centre of Florence in the region of Tuscany, Italy. One of the most important Italian museums ...

, 1280–90),

Duccio Duccio di Buoninsegna ( , ; – ) was an Italian painter active in Siena, Tuscany, in the late 13th and early 14th century. He was hired throughout his life to complete many important works in government and religious buildings around Italy. Ducc ...

's ''

Maestà Maestà , the Italian word for "majesty", designates a classification of images of the enthroned Madonna with the child Jesus, the designation generally implying accompaniment by angels, saints, or both. The ''Maestà'' is an extension of the "Se ...

'' (1308–11), and other works. The convention had a historical appropriateness, as the Old Testament was originally written on scrolls, whereas nearly all surviving New Testament manuscripts are

codices The codex (plural codices ) was the historical ancestor of the modern book. Instead of being composed of sheets of paper, it used sheets of vellum, papyrus, or other materials. The term ''codex'' is often used for ancient manuscript books, with ...

(like modern books). They may also be used for the words of angels, especially

Gabriel In Abrahamic religions ( Judaism, Christianity and Islam), Gabriel (); Greek: grc, Γαβριήλ, translit=Gabriḗl, label=none; Latin: ''Gabriel''; Coptic: cop, Ⲅⲁⲃⲣⲓⲏⲗ, translit=Gabriêl, label=none; Amharic: am, ገብ ...

's greeting to Mary in Annunciation scenes.Ladis, Andrew & Maginnis, Hayden B. J., ''Painting in the Age of Giotto: A Historical Reevaluation'', pp. 155-156, 1997, Penn State Press, ,

Notes

References

* Earlier version first published in New English Dictionary, 1885. * Attribution: *{{EB1911, wstitle=Banderole , volume=3, page=312 Heraldry