The Medieval Mind and the Color Black

Hi there – so you came to read the information on the color black. Good for you! Its interesting stuff, but as it is not an integral part of the coat I chose to put it here, and not bog people down with something that is not necessary, but it is interesting.

I went looking for a heraldic meaning to the color black something that tied it to an emotion, and surprisingly didn’t find one.

Each of the heraldic colors conveys a meaning, but not necessarily an emotion or “state of being”. The following is from “A Display of Heraldrie” by John Guillim (c1551 - 1621) being a complete transcription of the first edition (1610) of this work

“Blacke is a color contrary to White, having little participation of light, and is of Scribonius thus defined, Nigredo est color in corpore crassiore exiguć luminocsiatis particeps. Whereby it is apparent that blacke is of lesse perfection then white. This colour is called in blazon Sable of the latine word Sabulum, which signifieth, grosse, sand or gravell, in respect of the heavy and earthy substance, wherein it aboundeth above all others. And this colour is reputed farre inferior in dignity to white, and is likened to darknesse”

But in this near 1600 source there is no mention of the emotional or social meaning of black, only the color’s dignity. Later resources associate a customary heraldic definition to the color black. These definitions include: grief; death; mourning; constancy; wisdom; prudence; honesty; veneration; and piety

The following symbolisms have been excerpted from W. Cecil Wade's "The Symbolisms of Heraldry or A Treatise on the Meanings and Derivations of Armorial Bearings". Published in London in 1898.

Or, yellow or gold - Generosity.
Argent, white or silver - Peace and sincerity.
Sable or black - Constancy, sometimes grief.
Azure or blue - Loyalty and truth.
Gules or red - Military fortitude and magnanimity.
Vert or green - Hope, joy and sometimes loyalty in love.
Purpure, purple - Royal majesty, sovereignty and justice.
Tenne or tawney - Worthy ambition.
Murray or sanguine - Not hasty in battle, and yet a victor.

So I had to ask myself: is the association of black with grief and mourning a Victorian invention?

It appears that in Western society there is a deep emotional linkage between the color black and the emotions surrounding death and grief, that extends back well beyond the Victorian period. What follows is some of the earlier evidence to associate the color black with death and mourning:

Starting with the funeral cortege of Queen Elizabeth the First. - year of funeral 1603

Moving backwards in time... to the death of Jane Seymour...  in 1537 King Henry wore black until well into 1538.

Looking still earlier there is the funeral of Richard III. 1483. The image is from Froissart’s “Chronicles”

Moving backwards: to 1436 and the Funeral of Duke Philip

It should be noted that Duke Philip wore black in remembrance of his father for most of his life. Starting in 1404 with his father’s death.

Above, the funeral of Duke Philip: Froissart. Left Duke Philip in 1419. Right Duke Philip in 1436

Back still further... The funeral of Phillip the Good in 1404

Records of the funeral show that these were sixty official mourners all donned in black, and at one stop along the route -Dijon- the cortege was met by 100 burgesses and 100 poor men,  all dressed in black.  And churches along the route were clothed in black as the Dukes body made it's way to its final resting place.   In St. Donation  the nave and the choir of the church were covered in a variety of black cloths.  And the chief mourner and heir of Duke Phillip the Good provided 400 men to be dresses in black at his expense.  And their only connection to the Duke was to hold torches along the funeral route. A cloth of gold,  lined in black satin covered the coffin.

In the work “Dressing Renaissance Florence” the funeral customs of the city in the 1300s are reviewed. The corpse typically was dressed in white, and the mourners in black or a deep russet color. There is an interesting interplay of white and black in light of the established precedence and dignity of the colors described by Guillim.

Looking back to the 11th century -  the death of Edward the Confessor is recorded on the Bayeux Tapestry -  here the body is shown dressed in black- more accurately what might have been black.  The members of the funeral procession however, are not.

Even older stories in Western tradition seem to have assigned roles to the colors black and white.

It is a device found in both Greek and Celtic epic tradition. In the Greek tale of Thesius, he goes to slay the Minotaur, sailing a black sail on his ship. If he is victorious he will change the sail to white. The same device to denote success or failure of a quest is reflected in the Irish tale of Tristan and Isolde. The Old Norse Tristrams saga was written in 1226 and tells how the ship sent to fetch Isolde to Tristran’s side will fly a white sail if it returns with her, and a black sail if it returns without her.

And one more interesting reference comes to us from the Welsh sagas of Bendigitbran. Here two brothers are named Nyssian and EffNyssian. Their names immediately give the reader an insight into their personalities. Nyssian is derived from the word for “light/ honor” and is associated with positive features and forces. The addition of the prefix “eff”, which means minus or without, to his brothers name to create EffNyssian associates this character with negative forces.

Like I said I'm still looking into this topic.  But it's proving fascinating