number. MR. J. Paul Rylands describes the coat above as "perhaps the very best of all Lancashire town arms, for it might, heraldically, belong to the Middle Ages, and is indeed symbolic of antiquity and loyalty." It is certainly a very privileged coat of arms, as few if any coats bear so many symbols of royal favour. - indeed, the incorporation of royal insignia into armorial bearings is jealously guarded and usually proscribed by the court officials. In Wigan's new grant there are (1) A King's Head, crowned, (2) the Royal "Leopard" (or "lion couchant guardant"), (3) a Mediaeval royal crown, and (4) the Supporting Lions. The King's head in the crest officially represents no particular king, in the words of the Rouge Croix herald (in whose hands the design took shape) it is intended "to be a conventional likeness to an early English Monarch." It is actually modelled on the portrait of King Edward III., but from the point of view of the town it symbolizes especially King Henry I. On Wigan's earliest town seal - probably the twelfth century - there appears to be a towered or castellated gateway over the centre of which is depicted what seems to be the crowned head of Henry I. These devices therefore, are taken as the chief symbols of the new bearings, the towered gateway becomes a Norman castle and the King's head becomes a crest - indicating Wigan as a town of consequence and royal patronage at the opening of the twelfth century. The royal lion, again, marks another important period in Wigan history. Edward III., by a charter of 1350, granted Wigan the right (with several other towns) to use a royal seal known as the "King's Recognisance Seal," on which was figured the King's head and the royal lion. The Somerset Herald expressed the opinion that as none of the other towns had made use of the King's permission by adopting the figures in their arms, Wigan could with propriety include them, and his view prevailed with the Chapter of Heralds. SUPPORTERS are nowadays usually granted only to the great cities, but Wigan's ancient importance has been thereby recognised, the lions giving the distinction to a highly dignified and privileged coat of arms. There is a final feature of unusual interest. The branches of the mountain ash held in the lion's paws add something to the conventional "mantling"