Arthur's Miscellany

Aspects of King Arthur, From Shields of Power to the Questing Beast

Helmut Nickel

• Publisher: Amberley Publishing
• Year: 2025
• eBook ISBN: 9781398124400
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: European Medieval History
• Index: History

'In the tenth-century Annales Cambriae, which possibly goes back to contemporary sources, the entry about the Battle of Badon Hill mentions that Arthur "carried the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ on his shoulders for three days and three nights". It is likely that this Latin quote is based upon a Welsh source, in which the words for "shoulder" (ysqwyd) and "shield" (ysqwyt) were close enough in spelling to get mixed up quite easily.'

Arthur's Miscellany is full of such insights, based upon a lifetime study of heraldry and armor. These essays were written over a period of more than 30 years, some never published before now. Chapters include: 'The Arms of Lancelot du Lac'; 'Why Was the Green Knight Green?'; and 'Merlin, Magic, and Swords of Power'. Alongside his career as an historian and museum curator, Helmut Nickel was a famous illustrator.

Few historians would be confident enough to interpret the symbology of the mid-15th century armorial, Les Noms, Armes, et Blazons des Chevalliers et Compaignons de la Table Ronde ? all 175 of them! Many of the illustrations within are by the author. This is an important contribution to the Arthurian canon ? and a tribute to a great scholar and artist from his friends and fellow researchers.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Acknowledgements
• Introduction by John Matthews
• 1 Notes on Arthurian Heraldry
• 2 About Arms and Armour in the Age of Arthur
• 3 The Arms of King Arthur
• 4 The Enigmatic Arms of Erec, Fils du Roy Lac
• 5 The Arms of Sir Yvain, The Knight with the Lion, and those of his Kin
• 6 The Arms of Sir Perceval and his Kin
• 7 The Arms of Sir Kay and Sir Bedivere
• 8 The Arms of Sir Tristram, his Kin and Friends
• 9 The Arms of Lancelot du Lac
• 10 The Arming of Sir Gawain
• 11 Why Was the Green Knight Green?
• 12 Merlin, Magic and Swords of Power
• 13 Ladies’ Service and Ladies’ Favours
• 14 Arthurian Animals
• 15 Surviving Camlann
• 16 A Crown Found and A Grail Tournament Held at the ‘Castle of The Maiden’
• 17 Who Was Eslit?
• 18 What Kind of Animal Was the Questing Beast?
• 19 Who Was Trebuchet, the Smith who Forged Perceval’s Sword?
• 20 Black against White
• 21 Arthurian Armings for War and for Love
• 22 The Fight About King Arthur’s Beard and for the Cloak of Kings’ Beards
• 23 About Divers Precious Stones
• 24 The Naked and The Best
• 25 A Pictorial Source for The Grail Maiden?
• 26 About the Saxon Rebellion and the Massacre at Amesbury
• 27 Last Days of Rome in Britain and The Origin of The Arthurian Legends
• 28 About The Knight with Two Swords and The Maiden Under a Tree
• 29 About The Lace with the Knot in Sir Gawayne and the Green Knight
• 30 Arms and Armour in Arthurian Films
• 31 The King’s Arms, the Queen’s Legs, and the Cat’s Miau