Armorials from the holding of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek

Armorials have existed since the mid-13th century. They had their heyday in the late Middle Ages and were often continued into modern times. They depict shields and subsequently also full coats of arms. They are the oldest and most important heraldic sources, but they also show a variety of products of pure fantasy in addition to real coats of arms, so not everything can be assigned to anyone. They served as documentation and registers to list the participants of a tournament or festival and to record the given coats of arms, thus bearing witness to the aristocratic lifestyle and self-portrayal. They are thematically related to the collection of aristocratic genealogies also available in bavarikon.

bavarikon presents selected manuscripts from the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek's extensive collection. One particularly detailed exhibit is Conrad von Grünenberg's armorial (Cgm 145). It was created around 1480 and brings together numerous coloured pen drawings of individual coats of arms, groups of coats of arms and scenes.

The "Scheibler’sche Wappenbuch", or Scheibler Armorial in English (Cod.icon. 312 c), created in the course of the 15th to 17th century, comprises more than 620 coats of arms, of which the oldest part contains more than 470 noble coats of arms, each with a frog-mouth helm, mantling and crest, as well as blank coats of arms templates as preparatory drawings. Another prominent armorial from the collection is the "Ortenburger Wappenbuch", or Ortenburg Armorial in English, (Cod.icon. 308 u), which probably originated between 1466 and 1473.

Further collections of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek on the subject on bavarikon

>> This collection is part of the holdings of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek (Bavarian State Library).

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