454 
HERALDRY, 
The Romans, at their funeral folemnities, always bachelor bears his arms Tingle of courfe, with hsi hel- 
fond of pomp and magnificence,'had the images of their 
anceflors carried in proceffion to the tomb; over which 
tiie fplendi'd trophies of tlie deceafed were fufpended, as 
a lading monument of his bravery and of his virtues. 
This pageantry was attended with great care, conducted 
with appropriate decency, and recorded by theclalTical 
liiflorians; and family connection was fo much refpefcted, 
that it would have been,extremely incongruous to have 
introduced a (ingle image which was not entitled by 
confanguinity to a place amongft' them. We, read in 
Tacitus, that twenty images were carried at the funeral 
of Manlius ; and as many at the obfequies of Quintus. 
Speaking of the funeral of Drufus, the fame author 
fays: “It was pleafant to beliold the ffatue of ^Eneas 
the firft of the Julian family, thofe of the Albian kings, 
next to the Sabinian effigies; and the noble'images of 
the Ckudian family, all marching in a well-regulated 
proceffion.” Horace, who, in ,the midd of his mirth, 
and in his bed humour, ne ( v>qr, l.q'fl fight of the folernn 
rites due to the.obfequies of departed man, alludes to 
the fame cudbm, Epod. viii.n. 
Edo beataj fuiiits atque imagines 
Ducant triumphales tuum. 
When the folemnity was over, the three loud calls 
pronounced on the filent grave, and the ludrations duly 
performed, (he mourners returned to the houfe of the 
defunct, and his image was placed before the principal 
entrance of it. In that very ancient ceremony we per¬ 
ceive ihe origin of what is called, in our time, “ achieve¬ 
ment .,” or by contraction “ hatchment,” or funeral ef- 
cutcheon; which is hung, faysNifbet, “for. the honour 
and encouragement of the family to live nobly and 
virtuou fly.” 
A hatchment is a fquare piece of cloth, framed, and 
fiinounded by four boards covered with black baize, 
placed on the front of a houfe ; and whereon are painted 
the armorial bearings, whereby may be known what 
rank the deceafed perfon held when living ; the whole 
diflinguilhed in Inch a manner as to enable the beholder 
to decide whether he was a bachelor, a married man, 
ora widower: with the like didinCtions for a woman. 
The hatchment, thus enligned, is fufpended by one 
corner of the fquare, fo that the diagonal line becomes 
perpend,cular, as exhibited in the Heraldry Plate XI 1 . 
fig. i ; and w hich reprefents the whole of the hatchment 
of the immortal Horatio lord Me)fon,.knight of the order 
of the Bath. Here it mud be obfei ved, that the ladies 
of knights, whole (hields are furrounded by the ribbon 
of the order, cannot have their arms impaled in the fame 
fhield with thofe of their huftKtnd?, becauie they have 
no perfonul right to-the infignia of the order. This 
ritle which adniirs of no exception, ought to be driftly 
oblerved. And -for , the fame reafon if a commoner- 
marries a lady who is a peerefs in her own right, (ince 
fhe cannot communicate to him her right to a coronet 
and luppbrfers, which,are the diflinftive enfigns of the 
nobility ; her arms are find impaled with her huffiand’s, 
as in common cafes ; and on the (Snider (ide (he bears 
her own arms fingly within a lozenge, fupporters, and 
coronet, belonging to her degree. And again, when a 
commoner marries a peerefs by her own right, he may 
bear her arms on an efcutcheon of pretence, enfigned 
■with tiie coronet belonging to her degree; and even 
where a peer of the realm marries a peerefs in her own 
right, the fame means of difplaying her arms may be 
claffically adopted. But in cafe the be defirous of 
keeping her fupporters annexed to her own arms, die 
mud then' bear them in a lozenge, in a feparate place on 
the left, dillincl from the arms of her luifband, and 
with, her own fupporters. Thefe are the rules which 
the nobility now generally follow for the purpofe of 
difplaying their alliances. 
For the commoners, the practice is as follows ; A 
met, mantling, cred, and motto; and when he dies, the 
whole ground of the hatchment is painted black, ex¬ 
cept, fometimes, the (pot on which lies the cred, when 
the cred itfelf is fable, or of a very dark colour, in or¬ 
der to make it appear more confpicuous. See Plate XI I, 
A maid bears her father’s arms in a lozenge, without 
helmet, cred, or motto ;, and when die dies, the whole 
ground of her hatchment is made black; in this cafe; 
to fill up the (pace left unoccupied, the fancy of the 
painter fuggeds fome ornament, fuchasa large ribbon to 
fufpend the fhield, oricherubs’ heads to fill up the 
corners. See Plate XII. fig. 3. 
A married man bears his arms on the dexter fide, 
impaling thofe of his wife on the (inifler'; but if die is 
an heirefs, then on an efcutcheon of pretence. When 
the hufband dies, 'the dexter fide of the ground of the 
hatchment is painted black ; but if the wife dies firfr, 
the (inifler fide takes the fable dye, and the efcutcheon 
is without helmet,' cred, or motto. See fig. 4 and e, and 
alfo fig. 6 and 7. 
There is as yet .no heraldic diflinftion fettled to fliowr 
on a carriage or efcutcheon, that a man is a widower; 
though fuch a d'iflihftion would be of obvious utility. 
When a widower dies, the whole ground oflthe hatch¬ 
ment is painted black, as (hown in the Engraving at 
fig. 8. and alfo when a widow has departed this life ;, 
but with this difference, that botli her’s and her hufband’s 
arms are impaled in a lozenge, as exhibited at fig. 9, 
When a widower marries a fecond 'wife, outofye- 
fpebtforhis former confort, and indeed confidently with 
the laws of heraldry, he places his Coat between thofe 
of his two wives ; the fird on the right,-the -fecond on 
his left fide, and when he dies, his hatchment is to be 
covered with black on the ground, as far as his fird 
wife’s coat of arms and his own extend. See fig. 10. 
But if his two wives are buried before him, he- may for 
the lad of them put the hatchment with the ground be¬ 
neath his wives bearings painted black, the part under 
his own remaining white. Seefig. 11. 
A bifhop, or a perfon impaling on the right the arms 
of an office, ought to exhibit his arms and thofe of his 
wife in two (hields, in the manner exemplified in fig. 12 
and 13; and, if his wife dies before him, the (inifler 
part of the hatchment is to be painted black, as far as- 
her arms extend, about a third part of the ground, as 
fliown at fig. 12. But if the hufband dies fird, the part 
of the hatchment under his coat is then to take the 
mourning hue. If the hufband dies a widower, his 
hatchment is painted black from the flnifler angle, as 
far as his coat of arms extends on the ground, tiie red 
being left white, becaufe the arms of the fee, or of 
the office, cannot die. 
Mottos to be placed under the arms within a fcroll, 
in hatchments, are generally left to the choice of the 
relatives of the deceafed.or to the fancy of the painter, 
and have been commonly more religious than heraldic ; 
as In calo quies ; Mors janua vita ; Refurgam, &c. 
In pompous obfequies many elcntcheons are hung 
arohnd the coffin, the herfe, and on the trappings of 
the horfes ; in fome countries they are affixed to the or¬ 
naments of the altar, and even round fhe whole body 
of the-church, bn a black frize, which the French he¬ 
ralds call a litre-, and the lhape or them isan oblong fquare 
of about fifteen inches, by ten or twelve. Banners alio are 
carried in proceffion to the grave, as reprefented at fig! 
15 and 16. This cuflom has been of late conliderably 
negledled, particularly on the continent, where the 
fpirit of revolution, and the demon of war, have con- 
fpired to level all ranks and overturn all ancient prac¬ 
tices. Although we are aware, that if the mind of the 
rigid philofopher confiders that (uch a protufion of ar¬ 
morial ornaments has often no other eflebt than to flatter 
the folly of odentation and feed our vanity, lie may 
whilper 
