A Publication of Armorial Gold Heraldry Services

THE WREN

The Druids considered the Wren 'supreme among all birds.' It was the sacred bird of the Isle of Man, formerly a shrine of the dead and the dwelling-place of the Moon Goddess who cared for pagan souls. In Scotland it was the Lady of Heaven's Hen and killing a

 Wren was considered extremely unlucky; however in England and in France the Wren was hunted on St Stephen's Day, where an ancient Christian ceremony took place. It is said that hunters dressed in ritual garb, hunted and killed a Wren, then hung it on a pole, taking it on a procession though the village demanding money and fortune. The Wren is generally accepted as a totem of good fortune and affluence.

THE WILLOW

Symbol of endurance, grace

Known as the tree of enchantment to some and a totem of grief and mourning to others. Eastern cultures revered the willow as a symbol of beauty, grace, endurance and strength. The leaves and bark of the willow tree have been mentioned in ancient texts from Assyria, Sumer and Egypt as a remedy for aches and fever

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WINGS

Associated with Hermes

Usually borne in pairs on either side of another charge and denote protection. Symbols of peace, flight, freedom and spiritual transport. There are many charges that

 feature wings which have their own meaning; such as a winged globe as a symbol of the holy spirit. In Heraldry a single wing is called a “demi vol” and usually enjoys the symbolism of the eagle.

Associated with Hermes, the great messenger of the gods in Greek mythology.

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THE WHEEL

symbolic of transportation

The wagon wheel is symbolic of transportation, successful journeys and expeditions, and also perpetuity. Winged wheels are symbols of peace, flight, freedom and spiritual transport. There are many charges that

 feature wings which have their own meaning; such as a winged globe as a symbol of the holy spirit. In Heraldry a single wing is called a “demi vol” and usually enjoys the symbolism of the eagle. Associated with Hermes, the great messenger of the gods in Greek mythology. The winged wheel is also a symbol of progress, seen in many contexts including the coat of arms of Panama and the logo of the Ohio State Highway Patrol. A Religious symbol of the Holy Spirit, and the continuity between old and new....

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WOODCOCK

From the Middle English woodcock, of origin in the Old English words "wudu" for wood, and "cocc" for cock or bird. Highly esteemed as game birds and said to be a bird easily caught. Usually borne as a pun on the family name.

Red Legged Falcon

venerable symbol of majesty

Is derived from the Latin "falx", meaning sickle, a reference to the Falcon's wing shape in flight. Egyptians associated the Falcon with the 'Eye of Horus'. The god Horus was believed to appear in the form of Pharaoh's Falcon or as a Falcon-headed god. The mythology states he could see everything at once because one eye was the sun and the other was the moon. It is written that Falcons were permitted to ride on Pharaoh's nape as his protector and divine spirit. Falcons were used in a royal sport known as falconry. Is the art of training Falcons (or hawks) to pursue and attack wild fowl or game; falconry started in ancient China and Persia and soon became prevalent with the royals of ancient Egypt; the Falcon was associated with the Egyptian sun god 'RA' and later the Christians adopted it as an emblem of the saviour. A venerable symbol of majesty and power, heraldic writers add that the Falcon denotes someone eager, or hot in the pursuit of an object much desired; if seated on its 'rest' or perch it may signify a bearer who is ready and serviceable for high affairs.

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We are leaving this help tip up, as more and more of you are upgrading

your Corel Draw software to X3 or X4 or X6

Corel Draw has changed some default settings in X3 and X4 that can render your vector images black, do the same for your F9 preview and in the case of X4 display your image excessively dark.

Fixes:

• Top Command Bar/View Select 'enhanced' and not 'enhanced with overprints';

• Top Command Bar/Tools/Color Management Color Mode for Effects-should be set at RGB (not CMYK); 

• Top Command Bar/Tools Select 'Save Settings as default' ;

• When importing AG graphics into X4, make sure you first group your image before using the F9 full screen preview (X3 imports the graphic already grouped).

Popular Free Graphic Design software for the WMF file format.

It's easy to use. AG has prepared a simple tutorial and link to this software. Click on the Serif logo

EMF/wmf THUMBNAIL VIEWER

As of Windows Vista and Window 7, the Microsoft Windows Explorer no longer displays thumbnails image previews of EMF (Enhanced Metafile) and WMF (Windows Metafile) vector graphic images. This Windows Explorer plug-in restores this capability. At this writing this thumbnail viewer is free

Check the member resources page for more thumbnail viewers.