Vert (heraldry) medieval figurative art. The Anglo-Norman "prose Brut" (c. 1200) has Brutus of Troy bear a green shield, "Brutus Vert-Escu, Brutus Viride Scutum". Green is occasionally found in historical coats of arms (as opposed to the fictional "green knights" of Arthurian romance) from as early as the 13th century, but it remained rare, and indeed actively avoided, well into the 15th century, but becomes more common in the classical heraldry of the 16th and 17th centuries. An early example of a green escutcheon was that of the coat of arms of Styria, based on the banner of Ottokar II of Bohemia
Bureau of Heraldry Bureau of Heraldry The Bureau of Heraldry is the South African heraldic authority, established in Pretoria on 1 June 1963. It is headed by a State Herald (known unofficially as the National Herald since 2004) and its functions are to register arms, badges, flags and seals (as well as names and uniforms), to keep a public register, to issue registration certificates and, since 1980, to advise the government on heraldic matters. Together with the Heraldry Council, it forms part of the National Archives and Records Service (formerly called the State Archives Service), which is currently under the authority of the