And We're Off ... to Belgium!

So, having finally finished going through my earlier pictures of heraldry in Stuttgart and Heidelberg from a couple of trips taken several years ago, we are now up to our trip to Europe in 2019, with stops in Belgium (specifically, Antwerp and Ghent) and Denmark (Copenhagen, with side trips to Fredericksborg, Helsingør, and Roskilde).

So first, Belgium, whose national arms are blazoned Sable a lion rampant or armed and langued gules.

If you arrive in Antwerp by train, as you come out of the Central Station, be sure to turn around and take a look up:

You will see a gilded rendition of the Belgian national arms in front of an obelisk and supported by two lions:

These arms will also be seen done in stained glass in the nearby Cathedral of Our Lady (Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal), here flanked by the arms of Antwerp (left) and Brugge/Bruges (right):

It is possible (there was no attribution of the arms on the window) that this coat of arms is meant to be that of the Duchy of Brabant. Given that the two coats - Belgium and Brabant - are identical, it's hard to be certain.

In any case, we will certainly be seeing a lot more from the interior of the Cathedral in future posts; there is a lot of heraldry to be found there.