- Creating a coat of arms has become a new luxury symbol.
- Heraldic symbols have been a thing among nobility since the Middle Ages, with many existing coats of arms dating back centuries. But more wealthy people outside of Europe are now looking to create their own new coat of arms to put on yachts or personal stationery.
- Interest in heraldic symbols has risen along with the popularity of genealogy tracing and TV shows like “Game of Thrones.”
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The most consistent thing about wealthy people (and in particular, newly wealthy people) remains their tendency to want to be seen and recognized as such.
Perhaps this is why, as Tom Ball of The Times UK reports, the demand for new coat of arms designs has skyrocketed in the past few years. Experts believe that the rising interest in obtaining a personalized heraldic symbol of one’s very own may have to do with the increasing popularity of genealogy tests, as well as dynasty-focused TV shows like “Game of Thrones,” Ball writes.
Most of the new interest comes from wealthy people in America, the Middle East, and East Asia, according to design and printing company Downey. A representative for the company told Ball that its commissions for new coats of arms have doubled in the past five years, with international customers now making up 40% of commissions — up from 20% in the years prior.
“American clients especially seem to want an emblem, almost logo design, for their family that can be passed down to future generations,” Quentin Peacock, a heraldic artist, told the Times.
In the UK, the College of Arms in England and the Court of Lord Lyon regulate who has the right to use a Coat of Arms, which are typically granted to companies or individuals that are in national good-standing, and are British or of British descent. In the US, however, anyone can create and adopt their own coat of arms.
Leo Turner, a co-owner of Downey, told the Times that most of his clients want their newly-made coat of arms placed on personal stationery or on their yachts.
But the ultrawealthy don’t just want these personalized symbols for their families. Many billionaire business owners are having heraldic symbols made for their companies, according to the Times; for example, Jeff Bezos had a one made for his company, Blue Origin, with the design of two tortoises and a rocket headed to space.
The surge of interest in coats of arms is just the latest status symbol among the nouveau riche. Recently, Goyard and Bottega Veneta handbags have been all the rage, and amid the pandemic, the most prominent markers of wealth include easy access to quick and personalized healthcare via concierge doctors and the rising use of secluded second-homes as primary residences to escape virus hotspots.
And now, apparently, once borders open back up and yachts can freely dock in Saint-Tropez once again, you can be sure to spot a coat of arms (or two) among the vessels there.
