Considering the Image of the African in British heraldry

This talk will look at how images of African people have been included in the British and Irish heraldic traditions over the past five centuries.

While as heraldists we may be familiar with how images of African people have been used in European heraldry from central and southern Mediterranean regions, the subject is relatively neglected studies of British and Irish traditions.

Taking an interdisciplinary approach the talk will look at how depictions of African people in British and Irish heraldry have changed over time, what those images represented and how meaning has been shaped by broader historical context, and how heraldry impacted the lives of African people living in Europe.