Heraldry in the News

A recent article in the Evesham Journal (dated November 23, 2012) asks the question, “Is town’s old coat of arms worth £2,500?”

The article notes that £2,685 will be the cost to the town council to have the old Pershore Rural District Council coat of arms (transferred to Wychavon District Council in 1974 during a local government reorganization) re-granted to the town by the College of Arms.

While many of the town councilors are in favor of re-adopting the coat of arms, others members felt it was dated and needed a redesign. Others expressed the view that it wasn’t worth paying for at all, suggesting that the money might be better spent on the local library. Councilman Derek Watt is quoted as saying, “It seems to me that as it was designed many years ago it would be useful that the town council have it for historical value. I think we need something more modern.”

[Sarcasm on] Why, yes, by all means, you should spend a lot of money to a graphic design firm to come up with a “more modern” logo, something that will look outdated in five to seven years, instead of realizing that an “old” coat of arms can and may be interpreted by different artists in a “more modern” style and continue to be kept up to date in that way, thus allowing you to keep both the historical and new renditions to suit all of your purposes. [Sarcasm off]

The full story (without my sarcasm) can be found on-line at: http://www.eveshamjournal.co.uk/news/10064239.Is_town___s_old_coat_of_arms_worth___2_500_/