Her. Orig. known as a "'cognisance'. An emblematic figure prominently displayed or an image composed of something easily recognisable, and associated with a particular person or family, e.g. the broom sprigs of the *Plantagenets, the ostrich feathers of Edward, the Black Prince, or the sun in splendour of Richard II, with the sun behind a cloud when used on his effigy.
Dictionary of Medieval Terms and Phrases. Christopher Coredon with Ann Williams.