Loughborough trinket box

You've probably noticed it's coming up to Christmas! Lights in the town centre, Christmas trees in the church, Christmas music in the shops, board games at Fearon Hall! And lots of opportunities to get out and about and see some different things.

This weekend I popped along to an antique fair, held in the Hodson Hall in the grounds of the Endowed Schools on Burton Walks. I've been to lots of antique shops over the years, but not to a fair for quite some time - and I was pleasantly surprised!! Lots of interesting artefacts - from jewellery, to glass, from china to wood working tools, and everything in between. Also, cigarette cards, old money, postcards and ephemera. So, what better present to buy for a lover of Loughborough than a trinket box? No ordinary box though. A little china affair, with a Loughborough "coat of arms" (i) on it: a little but worn, but still recognisable.

The lion at the top (the crest) is related to the Beaumont family, who were lords of the manor, from the time of the reign of Henry III (around 1265) and Henry VI (around 1422).

Now, my knowledge of heraldry is scant, so I may not be able to accurately describe the shield. What I do know, however, is that the motif on the top right is a maunche which represents the Hastings family, who were the lords of the manor following the Beaumonts. The bull on the bottom of the shield is also a motif associated with the Hastings family.

The diagonal strip across the middle of the shield shows a cockle shell top and bottom, and a fret or lace pattern in the middle, all of which are part of the coat of arms of the Despencer family, Hugh le Despenser being lord of the manor until his death at the battle of Evesham in 1265.

The motto is just about discernible and says: "In veritate victoria". A modern-day interpretation of this would be "Victory is in truth", and this was the motto associated with the former Barons of Loughborough, that is, the Hastings family.

The arms were officially granted in 1889, which was the year of the incorporation of the borough. In 1974 the Borough of Charnwood was granted use of the arms. 

i) This is not strictly a coat of arms, as there are no supporters included. Supporters usually appear on each side of the shield, and often appear to be holding up the shield. 

You are welcome to quote passages from any of my posts, with appropriate credit. The correct citation for this looks as follow:

Dyer, Lynne (2018). Loughborough trinket box. Available from: https://lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com/2018/12/loughborough-trinket-box.html  

[Accessed 9 December 2018]

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Lynne