Heraldry

When it comes to choosing possible divisions lines for use in Field Divisions and Ordinaries, some lines may seem to represent one thing or another which might bend towards selection.
Nebulee or Nebuly: The sea or water.
Engrailed and Invected: Earth or land.
Indented: Fire.
Dancette: Water.
Ragulee or Raguly: Difficulties which have been encountered.
Embattled: Fire or the walls of a fortress or town.

Fess Indented.	Indented Being a very simple serated line, and it said to represent Fire. This would depend on this ordinary or division used. For instance, a gold indented bend might represent a flaming sword. Divided per fess indented might be burning fields, or hot rough terrain of the fighter's homeland. It might be the most common lines and can be drawn like this:	Pale dancetty.	Dancetty or "Dancy", not to be confused with indented.  The angled is the same, usually, but the broken lines are longer. Probably named for the way it dances across a shield, and for this reason might be chosen by a Bard. Usually drawn like this: It's semblance to an egyptian hieroglyphic might cause some to think it represents water. Rushing rapids is the most likely case.
			Dentilly Like the previous two, but alternate right angle and 45 degrees, like: . The name may mean teeth, and it certainly looks that way. This could represent ferocity or something of the sort, or it may tie in with a fanged charge.

Invected Lines with convex curves (outward), , and is said to represent Earth or land. This may be rocky terrain, or a bumpy road.

Engrailed The inverse of invected, concave (inward) lines, that looks alot like water. It is said to mean Earth or land again, but I think it is meant to be coastal. The name indicates a cup or grail that holds liquid just as the shoreline holds a lake or sea.

Undy or Wavy This couldn't mean anything other than waves or water. I've seen it given as being two different lines, but the names are synonymous. Undy is depicted with undulations that aren't as dramatic as wavy:. Crested I've only seen this mentioned once, and suspect it to be an SCA invention, otherwise it is very rare or modern if "genuine". Like wavy, except that the undulations come to a crest:. Very apt for sailors and pirates.

	Embattled This type of line is the most popular and more variations which are common. Embattled is meant to depict the walls of a city, fortress or town. It is often used by Paladins and Fighters and knights. I may be wrong, but I thought I was told (as a child) that any walled city in Germany would have a certain mark on its crest, and that it might be an embattled line or charge (bordure or base). This could be a campaign rule (even if I've imagined the whole idea.) Embattled is also said to represent Fire, although this is not said by me.  This might be true, however if one brings to mind pitch and burning oil and flaming arrows (and all that fun stuff). If both sides of a charge are embattled, the charge is refered to as counter-embattled. If the crenellations are lined up the charge is called bretessed. Embattled Grady This variation is a gradiated ()version of embattled with one or two extra levels.	Pale Brettessed.

Dovetailed You may have heard this term in architecture or carpentry, but what do bevelled grooved have to do with lines on a shield? There is only one possible origin I can concieve of for the name of this line: it looks like the pin feathers of urban fowl hanging over the edge of a building while they perch: It takes a little more imagination to come up with symbolism for this (statues and chariot washers beware!).

	Urdy I don't know what this is supposed to be or what the word means.  It looks like a cross between embattled and wavy: . An older form, that used to be used as vair, looks very much like undy.		Rayonny This flame like line probably refers to rays of heat or light, perhaps represent the sun or divine power. It looks like fingers of fire. Of all partition line, Mages will use this one with any frequency.

Raguly This might be said to be embattled, on an angle. I don't know enough Norman tongue to say what it means. I've heard it's supposed to mean "difficulties which have been encountered", so it might portray a fence.	Nebuly Why this is said to represent "the sea or water" is beyond me. The word must refer to nebulous clouds or nebulae, (which means clouds). This is the second most popular line with Mages (aeromancers, diviners, haruspexes and weather druids. Some variations exist in its depiction, almost so as to give a rainy impression. Older forms might appear similar to line used in early vair.	Potenty A line made up of Heraldic potents, which are "crutches". What these crutches represent may be the subject of debate. A not uncommon line, but mostly adopted by Priests and perhaps aged knights.

The following lines of division of very rare in the extreme, and I wouldn't be at all surprised if they were spurious creations by SCA Heralds.

Nowed Looks like it may be the arch in a doorway or a bridge keystone. Nowy, I think means knotted or in a bow.	Arched, Double Like arched, but bows a second time from the middle, interesting heart shape created in a chief or fess on a heater or triangle shield.	Angled Like nowed and escartelle, in the middle it makes a couple of right angled turns, creating two parallel lines (like Bevilled).	Bevilled Brings to mind dove-tailed.
Escartelle Not unlike nowed, but square.	Arched Fairly uncommon, favoured for its plain simplicity. Usually employed horizontally, rarely vertically and almost never diagonally.  That is at least to say, the rarer it is thought to appear, the more likely its use will be original. (Imagine, if you will, Bend Sinister arched-counter-arched.)		Firtree I've seen a fir line once, in a Scandanavian shield, this is no doubt more common in polar climes of Europe.
Clover Leaf Possibly of Irish ancestry.	Fleury-Counter-Fleury The fleur de lis, much used as a line in bordures, reserved mostly to royal houses.	Spades Brings to mind the playing cards.	Firtwig I think this is a line used in a device of Swedish origin.