Pimbley's Dictionary of Heraldry - E

The imperial eagle is invariably represented as two-headed, the origin of which is obscure. Charlemagne is said to have used it to signify that in his hands was the government of both the Roman and the German empires.

The eagle is generally borne displayed; that is, upright, breast to the front, and legs, tail and wings expanded (commonly called a "spread eagle").

The Bald Eagle, adopted as the national emblem of the United States, is a large and powerful bird, with a far greater spread of wing than the European white-tailed species.

Eared - Applied to animals borne with the ears of a different color from that of the body. In such a case the animal is said to be "eared of" such a color or metal. Earl - The title of an English noble, the third in rank, coming next below a marquis.

EARL'S CORONET - The head attire of an earl, sometimes used in blazonry. The crest of Davidson in Carlisle Cathedral shows a bird rising out of an earl's coronet. This is unusual, however. Generally a ducal coronet is used.

EARL MARSHAL - An English office of great antiquity, and is now hereditary with the Dukes of Norfolk. The Earl Marshall is the head of the College of Arms, which institution determines all questions relating to arms and grants of armorial bearings.

EARL MARSHAL'S COURT - An institution formerly existing in England, presided over by the Earl Marshal, in which all questions and disputes concerning coats of arms were settled. It has since been abolished.

Edged - Applied to an ordinary to denote that the edging is placed only between the ordinary and the field, and not where it joins the escutcheon.

Effare - (af-fa'-ray) [French.] Said of an animal when represented as rearing on its hind legs from fright or rage. 

Eight-foil - A grass that has eight leaves. [See OCTOFOIL.]

Elevated - Applied to the wings of a bird when upright and expanded.

Embattled - Indented like a battlement.

The notch in a parapet is called an embrazure, and the intermediate piece of masonry a merlon. When a second and smaller merlon is placed on the first the battlement is said to be stopped.

EMBATTLED COUNTER-EMBATTLED - Embattled on both faces of the ordinary.

EMBATTLED GRADY - One embattlement upon another.

Emblazon - To blazon; to place and arrange figures armorial.

Emblazoner - One who blazons.

Emblazonment - The act or art of blazoning; blazonry.

Emblazonry - Heraldic representations or decorations.

Embordered - (-bor'-derd) Having a border of the same tincture as the field.

Embordured -)-bor'-durd) The same as EMBORDERED. 

Embowed - (-bow'd) Bent or bowed.

Embraced - Braced together; bound or tied together.

Embrazure - [See EMBATTLED.]

Embroidery - A term applied to a hill or mount with several copings or rises and falls.

Embrued - (-brud') Said of the mouths of beasts when bloody from devouring their prey; also applied to a weapon represented as covered or sprinkled with blood.

Emerald - Green. [See VERT.]

Empaled - (-paled') This is a term used to describe a shield in which coats of arms are placed side by side, each occupying one-half the escutcheon. The shield is divided by a line down the center (per pale). The arms of the husband are placed on the dexter side, and those of the wife on the sinister.

Empalement - Two coats of arms placed on a shield palewise..

Enaluron - (en-a-lu'-ron) Applied to a bordure charged with eight birds.

Enarched - Arched.

Enarmed - Represented with horns, hoofs, etc., of a different color from that of the body.

Enclave - (in-kla've) [French.] Anything which is represented as let into something else, particularly when the bearing so let in is square.

Endorse - One of the diminutives of the pale, being one-eighth the breadth of that ordinary. The endorse is used only in pairs - one on each side of the pale. This subordinary, like the pallet, was unknown in ancient heraldry.

Endorsed - A pale having an endorse on each side. 

Enfiled - Used to describe a sword drawn as transfixing the head of a man or animal, a coronet or other object. 

Englante - (an-glan'-tay) [French.] Bearing acorns or something similar.

Englislet - (eng'-lis-let) An escutcheon of pretense.

Engoulee - (an-goo'-lay) An epithet applied to a bend, cross, saltire, etc., when the ends enter the mouths of lions, tigers or other animals.

Engrail - (-grail') To indent in curved lines; to make ragged at the edges; to spot as with hail.

Engrailed - Indented in a series of curves.

This is applied to one of the partition lines, as well as to some bends, etc.
 
 

"Polwheel beareth a saultier engrailed." - Carew.

Engrailment - The state of being engrailed or indented in curved lines.

Enhanced - (en-hansd') Applied to an ordinary when removed from its proper position and placed higher up in the field.

Enleve - (an-lev'-e') [French.] Raised or elevated.

Enmanche - (an-man'-shay) [French.] Covered with or resembling a sleeve. Said when the chief has lines drawn from the center of the upper edge to the sides to about half the breadth of the chief. [MAUNCH.]

Enraged - In a leaping posture. It is sometimes used to describe the position of a horse which in the case of other animals would be saliant.

Ensign - To distinguish by a mark or ornament, such as a crown, coronet, mitre, etc. A bishop, for instance, ensigns his arms with a mitre.

Prelates of the Roman Catholic Church ensign their shields with a hat, the tassels of which indicate their rank. A cardinal has four rows of red tassels, an archbishop four rows of green tassels, a bishop has three rows and an abbot two, the latter's hat being black. Prelates and legates place a patriarchal cross in pale behind their shield.

A staff is sometimes said to be ensigned with a flag.

Ensigned - [See ENSIGN.]

Ente - (an-tay') [French.] Applied to an engrafted emblazonment. (Also written anté.)

Entoured - (en-toord") Said of a shield decorated with branches.

Entwined - The same as ENVELOPED.

Entwisted - The same as ENVELOPED.

Enurny - (en-ur'ny) A term used to describe a bordure charged with eight animals of any kind.

When birds are used enalurion is the proper term.

Enveloped - Applied to charges around which serpents are entwined. Also used in the case of laurel or other plants.

Environed - (-vi'-rond) Encircled; bound round or about.

Erased - (e-ras'd) A term applied to the head of an animal or other bearing having the appearance of being forcibly torn off, leaving jagged or uneven ends.

Erased is the opposite of couped, the latter meaning cut off even, straight.

Eradicated - A tree torn up by its roots.

Ericius - [See HEDGEHOG.]

Ermelin - [See ERMINE.]

Ermine - (er'-min) One of the furs used in blazoning, representing the skin of the little animal of that name. A field of ermine is white with black spots of a particular shape.

The animal ermine is scarcely known in heraldry, although its fur is widely borne.

Ermines - The reverse of Ermine, being white spots on a black field. (Sometimes described as counter-ermine.)

Erminites - (er-min'-ites) The same as Ermine, but with one red hair on each side of the ermine spots.

Erminois - (er'-min-wa) The same as Ermine, except that the field is gold and the spots black.

Escarbuncle - (es'-kar-bun-k'l) A charge or bearing supposed to represent the precious stone carbuncle, being a cross of eight rays set with knobs and the arms ending in fleur-de-lis. In another representation of this bearing the ends are connected by cross-bars. (Also called Carbuncle.)

Escallop - (es-kol'-up) The figure of a scallop shell. THis was originally worn to signify that the wearer had made a pilgrimage to the shrine of St. James, Compostella, Spain. Later on it was placed on the shield to show that the bearer or an ancestor had been a Crusader or had made a long pilgrimage.

Escallopee - (se-kol'-lo-pay) [French.] An escutcheon or a bearing which is covered with curved lines resembling scallop shells. These lines should represent the lines as overlapping each other.

Escalloped - (es-kol'-oped) The same as ESCALLOPEE.

Escartel - (es-kar'-tel) To cut or notch in a square form or across.

Escartelee - (-kar'-tel-ée) Cut or notched in a square form or across.

Esclatte - (es-klat'-ty) A term applied to anything shivered by a battle axe.

Escrol - (es-krol') The same as SCROLL.

Escutcheon - (es-kuch'-un) The shield, on which all lines are drawn and charges delineated; the background on which coat armor is represented; known in blazon as the field. It originally represented the war shield of a knight, upon which his arms were displayed.

ESCUTCHEON OF PRETENSE - A small shield bearing the arms of an heiress placed in the center of her husband's shield, instead of being impaled with his arms.

Escutcheoned - (es-kuch'-und) Having a coat of arms; supplied with an escutcheon; placed in an escutcheon.

Esquire - Formerly an armor bearer or attendant upon a knight.

Essorant - (es'-so-rant) Said of a bird represented with its wings half open, as if preparing to take flight. 

Estoile - (es'-twal) [French.] A star with six wavy points. It is different from a mullet , the later having only five points, and these are straight.

Estoilee - (es'-twal-ee) [French.] A star with four long rays in the form of a cross, tapering from the center to the points. (Also called a Cross Estoilée.)

Extendant - (ex-tend'-ant) The same as DISPLAYED. (Wings extended.)

Eyed - A term made use of in speaking of the spots in a peacock's tail.

Eyrant - (i-rant) Applied to eagles or other birds in their nests.