A cherub and a crown
Introduction
The photograph on this page of A cherub and a crown by Neil Owen as part of the Geograph project.
The Geograph project started in 2005 with the aim of publishing, organising and preserving representative images for every square kilometre of Great Britain, Ireland and the Isle of Man.
There are currently over 7.5m images from over 14,400 individuals and you can help contribute to the project by visiting https://www.geograph.org.uk
A cherub and a crown
Image: © Neil Owen Taken: 8 Oct 2014
Taunton's modern official crest is somewhat different to the version on the 1895 park gates. The winged cherub is thought to be based on an earlier spread-winged eagle and an Imperial crown, but the cherub emerged on a seal in 1685; it probably refers to the priory founded in the reign of Henry I by William Giffard, Bishop of Winchester. This crest was used up to 1934, whereupon its use could only be approved after the Imperial crown was replaced - it was illegal to use it without royal permission and only then if it was uppermost. The new crown was based on Saxon styles, with reference to Ine, King of the West Saxons, founder of Taunton.
Images are licensed for reuse under creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0
Image Location
Latitude
51.011967
Longitude
-3.103114