Blazonry is a special language, part English, part French, used to precisely describe the colours, shapes and objects that appear on a heraldic shield. There are several places to get help and information about DrawShield and the art of blazonry.

Drawshield User Guide

The User Guide shows you how to use this website as well containing a complete reference to all the terms that DrawShield can understand and a tutorial on the language of Blazonry for those new to Heraldry. The Catalog shows thumbnail images of most of the things that DrawShield supports.

Other Information on Blazonry and Heraldry

If you would like to learn more about Blazonry and Heraldry there are many books available on the subject, almost all of which cover at least the basics of the blazon language. As well as the guide and tutorial mentioned above there is a good on-line Grammar of Blazonry written by Bruce Miller of the Society for Creative Anachronism, most of which can be applied directly to Drawshield.

Looking For Your Family History or Coat of Arms?

DrawShield is just for creating and sharing heraldry, if you want to find your family coat of arms or family I suggest contacting a professional genealogist. If you are in North America I can highly recommend coadb.com. (Disclosure: the author has provided consultancy to coadb.com). If you are in the UK I suggest contacting Green Dragon Genealogy for a personalised and professional service.

Requests, Comments and Feedback

Finally, if you would like to help improve DrawShield or have suggestions for new features please go to the Contacts page.