THE SHIELD:--ITS PARTS, POINTS, AND DIVISIONS.--Their Shield, which the knights of the Middle Ages derived from the military usage of antiquity, and which contributed in so important a degree to their own defensive equipment, was considered by those armour-clad warriors to be peculiarly qualified to display their heraldic blazonry. And, in later times, when armour had ceased to be worn, and when shields no longer were actually used, a Shield continued to be regarded as the most appropriate vehicle for the same display. The Shield, then, which with its armorial devices constitutes a _Shield of Arms_, always is considered to display its blazonry upon its face or external surface. This blazoned surface of his shield the bearer, when holding it before his person, presents (or would present, were he so to hold it) towards those who confront him. The right and the left sides of the person of the bearer of a Shield, consequently, are _covered_ by the right and left (in heraldic language, the _dexter_ and _sinister_) sides of his shield: and so, from this it follows that the dexter and sinister sides of a Shield of Arms are severally _opposite_ to the left and the right hands of all observers. The Parts and Points of an heraldic Shield, which is also entitled an “_Escutcheon_,” are thus distinguished:-- [Illustration: No. 27.] No. 27. A, _The chief_: B, _The Base_: C, _The Dexter Side_: D, _The Sinister Side_: E, _The Dexter Chief_: F, _The Sinister Chief_: G, _The Middle Chief_: H, _The Dexter Base_: I, _The Sinister Base_: K, _The Middle Base_:[2] L, _The Honour Point_: M, _The Fesse Point_. [Footnote 2: This term is very seldom if ever used.] In blazoning the Divisions of a Shield, the term “_Per_,” signifying “in the direction of,” is employed sometimes alone, and sometimes (having the same signification) preceded by the word “parted” or “party.” The primary Divisions of a Shield are indicated in the following diagrams, Nos. 28-35:-- [Illustration: Nos. 28-30, 31-33, 34-35.] No. 28. _Per Pale_, or _Parted per Pale_, or _Party per Pale_. No. 29. _Per Fesse_, or _Parted per Fesse_. No. 30. (Nos. 28 and 29 together) _Per Cross_, or _Quarterly_ (the latter is the more usual term). No. 31. _Per Bend._ No. 32. _Per Bend Sinister._ No. 33. (Nos. 31 and 32 together) _Per Saltire._ No. 34. _Per Chevron._ No. 35. Tierced in pale (divided into three equal divisions by two vertical lines), a form seldom met with in English Heraldry. Technically this in English Heraldry is simply the representation of a pale. (See No. 87.) To these divisions should strictly be added the further division _gyronny_ (No. 147); but neither the term _per_ nor _parted per_ is ever employed in this connection. As will be seen, it is a combination of the forms shown in Nos. 30 and 33. A Shield may be further divided and subdivided, thus:--