clove

Many items found in the natural world occur in coats of arms, including many plants that people of the middle ages would be familiar with. Several varities of bush and small plants frequently found in the hedgerows beside fields can be observed A Complete Guide to Heraldry, A.C. Fox-Davies, Bonanza (re-print of 1909 Edition), New York, 1978, P270, in addition to the famous thistle of Scotland Understanding Signs & Symbols – Heraldry, S. Oliver & G. Croton, Quantum, London, 2013, P147. The clove is drawn not quite in the form that we know it today but rather as small “drop” shape seeds. For meaning we perhaps need to look at the spice trade perhaps, as this is an important element within that trade. A Glossary of Terms used in British Heraldry, J.H. Parker, Oxford, 1894, Entry:clove