COMPONY COUNTER-COMPONY - The same as above, but arranged in two rows. 

Composed - Arms Composed are the addition by a gentleman to his own armorial bearings of a portion of those borne by his wife. The practice is now obsolete, the device of marshalling the arms of one's wife with his own having rendered its continuance unnecessary. (Gloss. of Her.) 

Concaved - When ordinaries, etc., are bowed in the form of an arch they are sometimes referred to as concaved. 

Concession - Arms of Concession. [See under ARMS.] 

Confronte - (kon'-frun'-tay') Face to face; two animals facing each other. 

Conger - (kon'-ger) An eel. Specifically, the large sea eel found on the coast of Britain. 

Contourne - (kon'-toor'-nay') [French.] Turned in a direction not the usual one. Applied to a lion or other animal statant, passant, courant, etc., with its face to the sinister side of the escutcheon. (Some writers use the word "counter" in this sense.) 

Contre - (con'-tre) [French.] Used in composition, to describe several bearings when they cut the shield in a contrary and opposite manner. Example: Contre-chevron, alluding to two chevrons opposite to each other - where color opposes metal and metal opposes color. 

Contey - (co'-ney) This is the heraldic rabbit. (Also written cony, coni, conni and conig.) 

Corbeau - The same as CORBIE. 

Corbie - (kor'-by) A raven; a crow. (Also written CORBY.) 

Corby - The same as CORBIE. 

Cordal - (cord'-al) A string of the robe of state, composed of silk and gold threads, twisted like a cord, and having a tassel at the end. 

Corded - Bound or wound round with cords. 

Cordon - (cor'-don) A ribbon worn across the breast by knights of some orders. 

Cork - One of the herald's of the Office of Arms, Ireland. 

Corned - When the horns of a beast, such as the bull, are of a different tincture from that of the body he is then said to be corned of that tincture. [See ARMED 3.] 

Cornished - (corn'-ished) Adorned with a cornish or molding. 

Coronet - An inferior sort of crown worn by nobles. The Prince of Wales coronet consists of a circle of gold, jeweled, edged above with four crosses patée and as many fleur-de-lis, and closed with four bars and an orb and cross. A duke's coronet is bordered with eight strawberry leaves; that of a marquis with four, alternating with four pearls; that of an earl has eight strawberry leaves alternating with eight pearls; the viscount uses pearls only, but of an indefinite number, while the baron is restricted to four pearls only. 

The bishops of England have no coronet, but ensign their arms with a mitre. 

Cost - One of the subordinaries, being a diminutive of the bend. When borne in pairs, it is called Cottise. 

Cotise - [See COTTISE.] 

Cotised - [See COTTISED.] 

Cottise - (cot'-tise) The same as COST. 

Cottised - (cot'-tised) A term applied to ordinaries when borne between two cottises. 

Couchant - (couch'-ant) Applied to an animal lying down, with head raised.. 

This term differs from dormant in that in the latter sense the beast is represented sleeping. 

Couche - (coo-shey') [French.] Said of anything lying sideways, as a chevron couche -- a chevron placed sideways. 

Counter - In an opposite direction; contrary to the usual position. Sometimes used to denote an animal facing the sinister side of the shield. [In this sense see Contourné.] 

COUNTER-ATTIRED - Applied to the double horns of animals when borne two one way and two another -- in opposite directions. 

COUNTER-CHEVRONNE - Chevronny divided palewise. (Said of the field.) The equivalent of chevronné, of chevronny.
 

COUNTER-COMPONY - A border, bend, etc., which is composed of two rows of checkers of alternate tinctures. 

COUNTER-COUCHANT - Animals borne couchant, their heads being in opposite directions. 

COUNTER-COURANT - Said of two animals borne courant, and with their heads in opposite directions. 

COUNTER-EMBATTLED - Applied to an ordinary embattled on both sides. 

COUNTER-ERMINE - The contrary of ermine, being a black field with white spots. {See Ermines.} 

COUNTER-FLEURY - A term used to show that the flowers adorning an ordinary stand opposite to each other. 

COUNTER-PASSANT - Applied to two animals borne passant going in contrary ways. 

COUNTER-POTENCE - Said of potences when placed opposite each other. 

COUNTER-QUARTERED - When each quarter of an escutcheon is again quartered. 

COUNTER-SALIENT - Applied to two animals borne salient in opposite directions. 

COUNTER-TRIPPANT - Animals trippant in opposite directions. 

COUNTER-TRIPPING - The same as Counter-Trippant. 

COUNTER-VAIR - A variety of vair, in which the cups or bells are arranged base to base and point to point. 

COUNTER-VAIRY - The same as Counter-Vair. 

Counterchanged - A term which denotes that the field is of two tinctures, metal and color; that part of the charge which lies in the metal being of color, and that part which lies in the color being metal. 

Counterpaled - A term used of an escutcheon which is divided into an equal number of pieces palewise by a line fesswise, the tinctures above and below the fess line being counterchanged. 

Counterpointe - (-point-é) Made use of to describe two chevrons which meet with their points in the center of the shield, counter to each other. (The French use contrepointé.) 

Couped - (koop'd) Said of an animal having the head or any limb cut clean off from the body. 

A head couped is a head having the appearance of being cut off with a sharp knife. 

Couple-Close - One of the diminutives of the chevron, being one-quarter the breadth of that ordinary. It is borne in pairs, inclosing the chevron. (Sometimes written couple-closs.) 

Couple-Closed - Inclosed by the couple-close; as, "A chevron couple-closed." 

Coward - Said of beasts represented with the tail between the legs. 

Crampit - The cramp-iron of a scabbard. 

Cramponee - (cramp-on'-ay) A cross having at each end a cramp or crampoon. 

Crenellated - (cre'-nel-la-ted) An ordinary indented as with crenelles. 

Crescent - A bearing resembling the half moon with the points turned up. When used as a mark of cadency it denotes the second son. 

When the points of the crescent face dexter it is increscent; toward sinister, decrescent. 

Crest - Originally the crest was the ornament of the helmet, or headpiece, and also afforded protection against a blow. In the early rolls it was scarcely noticed, but in later armorial grants it came into general use. Crests, like arms, were sometimes allusive. Thus, Grey of Wilton used a gray, or badger, and Lord Wells a bucket and chain. In the early days of the crest it was confined to persons of rank, but in later times it has been included in every grant of arms. 

A coronet or helmet below the crest is not a mark of rank. 

Crined - Used to describe an animal having its hair of a different tincture. 

Croisant - (crois'-ant) A cross the ends of which terminate in crescents. 
Cross - One of the earliest and noblest of the honorable ordinaries. When borne plain it is blazoned simply as a cross. There are, however, more than a hundred varieties, some of the better known being the following: 
 

Anchored	Fitchee
Avellane	Flory
Bezant	Formee
Bottony	Moline
Cablee	Patee
Calvary	Potent
Chain	Recercelee
Cleche	Voided
Crosslet

CROSS ANCHORED - A cross in which the limbs terminate in anchors. 

CROSS AVELLANE - Ending in filbert husks. 

CROSS BEZANT - A cross composed of bezants joined together. 

CROSS BOTTANY - With the limbs terminating in budlike prominences. 

CROSS CABLEE - A cross made up of two cables. 

CROSS CORDED - A cross bound or wound round with cords. (This term is sometimes applied, though erroneously, to the Cablée.) 

CROSS CLECHE - A cross charged with another cross, of the same color of the field, so large that only a narrow border of the first cross remains visible. 

CROSS CROSSLET - A cross having the three upper ends terminating in three little crosses. It is usually borne in numbers, but this is not always the case. 

CROSS FITCHEE - Sharpened at the lower part; pointed like a dagger. The arms of the See of Canterbury represent four crosses patée fitchée. 

CROSS FLEURY - Adorned at the ends with flowers, generally the fleur-de-lis. 

CROSS FOURCHEE - Having the ends forked as branches, with the ends terminating abruptly, as if cut off. 

CROSS FORMEE - Resembling the cross patée, but differing in that its extremities reach the edge of the field. 

CROSS MOLINE - So called because its shape resembles a millrind (the iron clamp of the upper millstone). It is borne both inverted and rebated, and sometimes saltirewise or in saltire. When used as a mark of cadency it represents the eighth son. 

CROSS OF CALVARY (or Cross of the Crucififixion) - Represented mounted on three steps. 

CROSS OF ST. GEORGE - A plain red cross on a white field. It would be blazoned "Argent, a cross gules." 

CROSS PATEE - The emblem of the Knights of St. John, and is known as the Croix de Malthe. It spreads out at the ends. 

CROSS PATONCE - This has expanded ends like the cross patée, but each terminates in three points. 

CROSS POMMEE - With the ends terminating in single balls. 

CROSS POTENT - One which has its ends T-shaped, or resembling a crutch. (Also written potence.) 

CROSS RAGULY - A notched or jagged cross. 

CROSS RECERCELEE - A cross whose ends are split and curled outward. It is usually voided. 

CROSS URDEE - Differs from an ordinary cross only in that the extremities are drawn to a sharp point instead of being cut straight. 

CROSS VOIDED - A cross in outline only. 

Cross-bar - Sometimes used to designate the bar sinister; a mark of illegitimacy. 

Crossbow - [See ARBLAST.] 

Crossed - Borne crosswise. 

Crosswise - In the figure of a cross. (Essentially the same as CROSSED.) 

Crown - The crown of a sovereign prince is usually closed at the top by four arched bars, called diadems, and surmounted by a globe and cross. 

A crown placed below the crest does not denote the rank of the bearer. 

IRON CROWN - A crown which, besides its gold and jewels, contains a thin circle of iron, said to have been made from a nail of Christ's cross. It was first used at the coronation of the Lombard kings in A.D. 591. Napoleon I was crowned with it in Milan in 1805. 

Crowned - Surmounted by a crown. Sometimes a beast, generally the lion, is crowned royally or ducally. 

Crucilly - (cru'sil-ly) Said of a charge or field strewn with crosses. 

Crusade - One of the several expeditions of Christian knights against the Mohammedans in the Holy Land. There were seven distinct crusades. 

Crusader - One who took part in the crusades. 

Cubit Arm - An arm cut off at the elbow. 

Cuppa - (kup'-pa) A fur composed of any metal and color. Also called Potent-counter-potent. 

Currant - The same as courant. 

Curvant - (kurv'-ant) Curved; bowed. 

Cygnet royal - (sig'-net) A swan gorged with a ducal coronet, and a chain attached thereto, being reflexed over the back.