[MR] Rare 16th Armorial Discovered

[Garth Groff and Sally Sanford]

Noble Friends, Especially Heralds:

Today the History Blog reports on the discovery of a very rare armorial, or
book of heraldic arms, in the collection University of Manchester library.
The manuscript was based on a 1550 armorial of the painter Lucas Cranach
the Elder. The work at hand was commissioned in 1565 by the Elector of
Saxony (should be Francis I during his first reign, 1543-1571, if that
interests you) from the painter's son, Lucas Cranach the Younger. The
updated copy includes the Holy Roman Emperor's arms, those of his consort
Bianca Maria Sforza, as well as a mess of other Habsburgs including many
noble ladies. The work is a goldmine of heraldic information:
http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/57888 .

And here is a special sweetener: the entire book has been digitized in
vivid color. You can thumb through it (a reading knowledge of German is a
big help) at
https://luna.manchester.ac.uk/luna/servlet/detail/Manchester~91~1~433848~225786;JSESSIONID=87199d1a-ab62-4e78-a860-23d7f18c7ffb?qvq=q%3Agerman%20ms%202&mi=3&trs=10
.

Yours Aye,

Mungo Napier, Laird of Mallard Lodge  🦆