Editing Heraldry (section)

===Precursors===
Various symbols have been used to represent individuals or groups for thousands of years.  The earliest representations of distinct persons and regions in [[ancient Egypt|Egyptian]] art show the use of standards topped with the images or symbols of various gods, and the names of kings appear upon emblems known as [[serekh]]s, representing the king's palace, and usually topped with a falcon representing the god [[Horus]], of whom the king was regarded as the earthly incarnation. Similar emblems and devices are found in ancient [[Mesopotamia]]n art of the same period, and the precursors of heraldic beasts such as the [[griffin]] can also be found.<ref name="CGH 1–18"/>  In the [[Bible]], the ''[[Book of Numbers]]'' refers to the standards and ensigns of the [[Israelites|children of Israel]], who were commanded to gather beneath these emblems and declare their pedigrees.<ref>[[Book of Numbers|Numbers]], i. 2, 18, 52; ii. 2, 34; quoted by William Sloane Sloane-Evans, in ''A Grammar of British Heraldry'' (London, 1854), p. ix; quoted by {{harvp|Fox-Davies|1909|pp=6}}.</ref> The Greek and Latin writers frequently describe the shields and symbols of various heroes,<ref>{{harvp|Fox-Davies|1909|pp=6–10}}</ref> and units of the Roman army were sometimes identified by distinctive markings on their shields.<ref>''Notitia Dignitatum'', Bodleian Library</ref> At least one pre-historic European object, the [[Nebra sky disc]], is also thought to serve as a heraldic precursor.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Eiland |first=Murray |date=2003 |title=Pre-heraldry on the Sangerhausen Disc |url=https://www.academia.edu/43158757 |journal=The Armiger's News |volume=25 |issue=2 |pages=1, 9 |via=academia.edu}}</ref>

Until the nineteenth century, it was common for heraldic writers to cite examples such as these, and metaphorical symbols such as the "Lion of Judah" or "Eagle of the Caesars", as evidence of the antiquity of heraldry itself; and to infer therefrom that the great figures of ancient history bore arms representing their noble status and descent.  The ''[[Book of Saint Albans]]'', compiled in 1486, declares that Christ himself was a gentleman of coat armour.<ref>{{harvp|Fox-Davies|1909|p=6}}</ref>  These claims are now regarded as the fantasy of medieval heralds, as there is no evidence of a distinctive symbolic language akin to that of heraldry during this early period; nor do many of the shields described in antiquity bear a close resemblance to those of medieval heraldry; nor is there any evidence that specific symbols or designs were passed down from one generation to the next, representing a particular person or line of descent.<ref>{{harvp|Fox-Davies|1909|pp=11–16}}</ref>

The medieval heralds also [[attributed arms|devised arms]] for various knights and lords from history and literature.  Notable examples include the toads attributed to [[Pharamond]], the cross and martlets of [[Edward the Confessor]], and the various arms attributed to the [[Nine Worthies]] and the Knights of the [[Round Table]].  These too are readily dismissed as fanciful inventions, rather than evidence of the antiquity of heraldry.

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File:Narmer Palette serpopard side.jpg|Reverse of the [[Narmer Palette]], ''circa'' 3100 BC.  The top row depicts four men carrying standards.  Directly above them is a serekh containing the name of the king, [[Narmer]].
File:NAMA Mycènes bouclier 2.jpg|Fresco depicting a shield of a type common in Mycenaean Greece.
File:Hoplitodromos Staatliche Antikensammlungen 1471.jpg|Vase with Greek soldiers in armor, ''circa'' 550 BC.
File:RMW - Legionärsschild.jpg|A reconstruction of a shield that would have been carried by a Roman [[Legionary]].
File:Bodl Canon.Misc.378 roll159B frame28.jpg|alt=Shields from the "Magister Militum Praesentalis II".  From the Notitia Dignitatum, a medieval copy of a Late Roman register of military commands.|Shields from the "Magister Militum Praesentalis II".  From the {{Lang|la|[[Notitia Dignitatum]]}}, a medieval copy of a Late Roman register of military commands. However, it is likely the art on the shields are made to fit the time/age and not from the original.{{fact|date=October 2024}}
File:Harold dead bayeux tapestry.png|The death of [[Harold Godwinson|King Harold]], from the [[Bayeux Tapestry]].  The shields look heraldic, but do not seem to have been personal or hereditary emblems.
</gallery>