Editing Crescent (section)

==Heraldry==
{{Further|Star and crescent}}

The crescent has been used as a [[heraldic charge]] since the 13th century. 
In heraldic terminology, the term "crescent" when used alone refers to a crescent with the horns pointing upward. A crescent with the horns pointing left (''dexter'') is called "a crescent increscent" (or simply "an increscent"), and when the horns are pointing right (''sinister''), it is called "a crescent decrescent" (or "a decrescent"). A crescent with horns pointing down is called "a crescent reversed". Two crescents with horns pointing away from each other are called "addorsed".<ref name="Fox-Davies_209">Arthur Charles Fox-Davies, ''A complete guide to heraldry '' (1909), p. 289.</ref>
''[[Siebmachers Wappenbuch]]'' (1605) has 48 coats of arms with one or more crescents, for example:<ref>Sara L. Uckelman, [http://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/heraldry/siebmacher/siebmacherordinary.html An Ordinary of Siebmacher's Wappenbuch (ellipsis.cx)] (2014)</ref>
*''Azure, a crescent moon argent pierced by an arrow fesswise Or all between in chief three mullets of six points and in base two mullets of six points argent'' (von Hagen, p.&nbsp;176);
*''Azure, an increscent and a decrescent addorsed Or'' (von Stoternheim, p.&nbsp;146);
*''Per pale Or and sable, a crescent moon and in chief three mullets of six points counterchanged'' (von Bodenstein, p.&nbsp;182).
In English heraldry, the crescent is used as a [[difference (heraldry)|difference]] denoting a second son.<ref name="Fox-Davies_209"/>

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File:DeringRoll.jpg|Three examples of coats of arms with crescents from the [[Dering Roll]] ({{Circa|1270}}): No. 118: Willem FitzLel (sable [[semé|crusily]] and three crescents argent); no. 120: John Peche (gules, a crescent or, on a chief argent two mullets gules); no. 128: Rauf de Stopeham (argent, two (of three) crescents and a canton gules).
File:Wappen Neuamt.png|Coat of arms of the [[Neuamt]] bailiwick of [[Zürichgau|Zürich]] (16th century).<ref>''geteilt von Blau mit gestürztem goldenem Halbmond und von Gold mit zwei roten Rosen'' ("per fess azure a crescent reversed or and of the second two roses gules") ''Historisch-Biographisches Lexikon der Schweiz'', vol. V, p. 243.</ref>  Its reversed crescent was taken up in the 20th-century municipal coats of arms of [[Niederglatt]], [[Neerach]] and [[Stadel bei Niederglatt|Stadel]] ([[canton of Zürich]]).
File:Écu Divorde, armorial Toison d'Or Europe, fol. 34, vers 1440.jpg|This coat of arms of the [[Dievoort#Surnames from the name Dievoort|Divorde family]] (Holland and Brabant), around 1440, shows three crescents.
File:POL COA Kuczkowski.svg|Inverted crescent on Polish coat of arms.
</gallery>