Skip to content
tincture

File:Tinctures_(metals_and_colours).svg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

EntityQ3404720· pop 40· linked from 2,973 articles

Also known as tinctures, Heraldic tincture

colour used to emblazon a coat of arms in heraldy

Wikidata facts

Instance of
concept
Image
Tinctures.svg
Show 5 more facts
topic's main category
Category:Heraldic tinctures
Commons category
Heraldic tinctures
different from
tincture
topic has template
Template:Heraldry/tinctures
facet of
heraldry
Sources (3)

via Wikidata · CC0

~40 min read

Encyclopedic overview

The metals and common colours of heraldry. One system of hatching is shown at right. Tinctures are the colours, metals, and furs used in heraldry. There are nine tinctures in common use: two metals, five colours, and two furs. The metals are or (gold or yellow) and argent (silver or white); the colours gules (red), azure (blue), vert (green), sable (black), and purpure (purple); and the furs ermine, which is derived from the winter fur of a stoat, and vair, which is derived from the fur of a red squirrel. The use of other tinctures varies depending on the time period and heraldic tradition in question.

Where the tinctures are not depicted in full colour, they may be represented using one of several systems of hatching, in which each tincture is assigned a distinct pattern; or tricking, in which each tincture is designated by a letter or abbreviation.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “tincture” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (12)