boars

There are boars….and there are shiny boars….!

Mar 31, 2024

art, heraldry

boars, garden centres, Gloucestershire

Some manmade boars are downright ugly, but some are really handsome. My daughter spotted this splendid fellow at the Blue Diamond Garden Centre in Nailsworth, Glos. A fine addition to any Ricardian’s garden! £399 and he’s yours. There he was, posing at the front with all his companions. Unfortunately my daughter didn’t have a spare…
Richard III’s boar badge found at Chiddingly manor house in 1999….

Jul 13, 2022

archaeology, art, battles, buildings, Science

boars, British Museum, Chiddingly, country houses, metal detecting, noblemen, Richard III, silver, Sussex

“….in 1999 a metal detectorist made an extraordinary find that’s become known as the Chiddingly Boar: ‘The white boar badge was used by Richard III’s household and followers between 1472 and 1485,’ the British Museum explain on their website of the hat badge that is now in their collection….” “….The boar was Richard’s symbol, and thousands…
The Bacon family and the Quaplode boar….

Jul 30, 2021

buildings, genealogy, heraldry, humour, religion

Bacon family, boars, Coddenham, Crowland Abbey, Lincolnshire, Lowestoft, Quaplode family, Shrubland Hall, Sir Francis Bacon, Sir Nicholas Bacon, Whaplode, Whaplode Riots

As is natural, Ricardians are always interested in heraldry depicting boars. And one might expect a family named Bacon to sport a member of the family Suidae on its escutcheon. However, it seems the connection between Bacon and boars is not at the root of it:- “….You may think that the boar is a pun…
THE BOARS OF BARNARD CASTLE

Jun 27, 2021

buildings, heraldry, religion

Barnard Castle, boars, Bowes Museum, Northern Echo, St. Anthony

Many of us have visited Barnard Castle, one of the prime residences of Richard III when he was Duke of Gloucester, and gazed up at the eroded carving of a boar on the ceiling of the ruinous chamber that has a large window overlooking the river. (Richard clearly liked a scenic view!) However, there are…
Richard’s silver boar only makes it to Number Two 🤨….!

Oct 22, 2020

archaeology, heraldry

badges, boars, Leicestershire, treasure

Richard’s silver boar badge makes it to number two on this list, second only to a golden aestel of a horse’s head, which is believed to be part of a pointer for reading books. The boar should be first, of course. No question. But I don’t think we need to be told it’s a…
Did Richard hear the old Welsh legend of the Twrch Trwyth…..?

Mar 8, 2018

heraldry

Arthurian legend, boars, Cornwall, heraldic symbols, Ireland, Ludlow Castle, Richard III, River Severn, Twrch Trwyth, Wales, Wye

I have often wondered why Richard chose a boar as his cognizance. There are other heraldic beasts and symbols that might have appealed to him, but it was a white boar that he chose. Why? Well, from all accounts, he was only a child when he made the decision, so what might have…
Tales of a Ricardian Traveler: A Visit to King’s Cliffe Church and its Fotheringhay Artifacts

Feb 8, 2018

anniversaries, buildings, heraldry, travel

boars, Cecily Duchess of York, Dissolution of the Monasteries, Edmund of Rutland, Edward of Norwich, Elizabeth I, Fotheringhay, Henry VIII, King’s Cliffe, Leicester Guildhall, Mary Stuart, Northamptonshire, Richard Duke of York, Richard III, Yorkists

Originally posted on RICARDIAN LOONS: Lady on Horseback, mid-15th c., British Museum My husband and I had the good fortune to spend two weeks in England and Wales in October, 2017. I had been asked to moderate a conference about Richard III and 15th century warfare at the Leicester Guildhall, sponsored by the Richard III…