Pigs wear gold & blue

 

There is tenuous evidence pointing to a high-level connection in the Middle Ages between Hereford and Shrewsbury. However, the evidence is circumstantial, nothing solid so far.  
(If anyone knows different, would they please email us?).

One pointer is the blue & gold/amber colouring which is seen in various heraldry of the two towns.  Admittedly, it’s not a colour combination that’s unique to these two towns, but it underwrites the supposed connection.  
The loggerheads emblem always comes in blue & gold/amber colouring, as does the symbol of Hereford Cathedral. 

One example of the colour pairing in Hereford is these pigs – which wear livery of blue and yellow bends. They are seen on the tomb of John Swinfield (died 1311) in Hereford Cathedral.

 

A new book has now been published to celebrate 600 years of the loggerheads - click here to find out more.

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Bright and beautiful loggerheads

  

There have been a flurry of loggerheads renovations/restorations during 2025.  It’s probably coincidence, but maybe also an unconscious tribute to the emblem in this, the loggerheads' 600th year. Perhaps.
(See also: Pub-Sign Refresher and Coleham School updates).

Among these renovations is the complete refurbishment of the famous grade 2-listed Quarry Park gates. They were commissioned by the Shropshire Horticultural Society in 1881.
The main gates were even taken off site to get their makeover, which restored them to their pristine condition and also ensures their future. The park’s similarly designed side-gates were also restored.

The loggerheads are the main decoration on the structure, as the Horticultural Society seemed very fond of them.  (See Magnificent Gates)
It’s a bit of a puzzle however why the society ordered some of the loggerheads on the gates to be painted in blue only (see pic below).  The emblem should really be: gold faces, blue background.  Odd.

The gates are now back to their brilliant and vibrant best, and Shrewsbury Town Council should be congratulated on driving the project forward.

A new book has now been published to celebrate 600 years of the loggerheads - click here to find out more.

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Earl Roger in gold & blue

 

Thanks to JT for responding to my post about Earl Roger of Montgomery, the original Norman overlord of Shrewsbury.  I was mulling there over the theory that the gold & blue colouring in the loggerheads might have come from Earl Roger's shield of arms (even though if he had a set of arms, I couldn't find them).

JT pointed me in the direction of the 17th century map made by John Speed, a copy of which is to be found in the Civil War Room at Shrewsbury Museum.  Speed clearly has Roger's colours as gold & blue. 
However, as Speed lived five hundred years after Roger, he may have just been responding to a 'folk tradition'.

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Women's Institute softens with age

Over the years organisations change their logos - a way to adapt to modern times or just as a way to refresh a look.
The Shropshire Women's Institute did just that. 

The badge on the left comes from the 1950s; and the loggerheads are in the traditional style for the county logo.
The faces are passive, but the colours of blue and amber follow the tradition.

The 'ermine spots' - the decorations that resemble a topiary bush - are unusual in shape, but not completely outside the tradition.

('Erminois' is a heraldic device, meant to resemble the kind of prestigious ermine fur used by the peerage, which features dark spots).

 

 Meanwhile, the current version (right) is a much more cuddly one!  With age, the organisation has clearly mellowed, and taken a softer approach.

The leopards are more like puzzled kittens now and the amber colouring has toned down to a yellow.

What are really different are the ermine spots, which are not in the usual shape, but rather resemble Christmas trees... Admittedly, ermine spots have continued to change over the years, but these are new to us...

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Earl Roger the overlord

The tomb of Earl Roger de Montgomery in Shrewsbury Abbey is one of the town's most precious heritage assets.  Earl Roger was the Norman lord who was installed as the first Earl of Shrewsbury by William The Conqueror following the Norman invasion of England in 1066.

It's said that the reason that the traditional colours of loggerheads/Shrewsbury are gold & blue is because there were Earl Roger's colours. In fact, though Roger's wife and his son seemed to have arms of gold & blue bars, I can't find a direct link between Roger himself and any gold & blue colouring.  Can anyone help me find out more about this?

The gold & blue colours-combination has persisted for nearly one thousand years in Shrewsbury.  Today, the town's football club play in these same exact colours!

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