Myths, Hoaxes & Scams » Common Genealogical Myths » Myth: Family crest or coat of arms

Ancestry.com - Pssst! Want to Buy Your Family’s Coat of Arms?

Article by Dick Eastman.

Baronage Caveat Emptor: Name Histories and Family Crests

College of Arms - Frequently Asked Questions

Answers the question Do coats of arms belong to surnames? with a resounding NO!.

Excuse Me, But There's No Such Thing As A Family Crest

Heraldry: The Use and Abuse of Coats of Arms and Crests

One hundred years ago, William Crozier Armstrong noted that, In America we have no institution analogous to the College of Heralds; the consequence is, that there are more assumptive arms borne in America than anywhere else. It is not overestimating when we say that at least seventy-five percent of the arms engraved on notepaper today are fraudulent..

My So-Called Family Coat of Arms: A Case Study

Because 'heraldry' mills produced and sold coats of arms for any practically any surname for decades, a myth grew in American culture that every family has a coat of arms, or at least one exists for every surname. It has also become popular to use the expression 'family crest' when referring to the arms, but the two words are not interchangeable; the crest is what sits atop the coat of arms.

Society of Genealogists Information Leaflet No. 15 - The Right to Arms