{"product_id":"william-the-conqueror-duke-of-normandy-81715","title":"William the Conqueror, Duke of Normandy - Enthroned Seal - 1069 - Historical Wax Seal Stamp","description":"\u003cp\u003eWilliam the Conqueror, Enthroned Great Seal - 1069 - Historical Wax Seal Stamp\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWax seal stamp based on the enthroned face of the Great Seal of William I, better known as William the Conqueror, dating from the first years of Norman rule in England.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWilliam was Duke of Normandy from 1035 and became King of England following the Norman Conquest of 1066. After his victory at Hastings, he was crowned at Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day 1066, beginning a reign that fundamentally reshaped the government, aristocracy and culture of medieval England.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWilliam’s Great Seal is particularly important because its two faces deliberately represent his two principal identities.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Norman face depicts William mounted and armed as Duke of Normandy, while this face presents him seated in majesty as King of England.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWilliam is shown frontally upon his throne, crowned and holding the traditional symbols of royal authority. The composition follows an established European tradition of portraying a sovereign enthroned, emphasising government, law and legitimate kingship rather than the military character of the equestrian face.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe contrast between the two images was intentional. On one face William appears as the mounted Norman ruler from whom his hereditary authority derived; on the other he appears as the crowned King of the English whose position had been established following the events of 1066.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Great Seal was more than a royal portrait. Attached to important charters and grants, it authenticated documents issued in the king’s name and provided a visible representation of royal authority in an age when relatively few people would ever see the monarch personally.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe seal is also especially significant because it predates the developed system of hereditary heraldry. William is represented through royal regalia, inscription and personal imagery rather than through the formal coats of arms that became characteristic of later medieval monarchs.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSeal Legend:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+ HOC ANGLIS REGEM SIGNO FATEARIS EVNDEM\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eExpanded Latin:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHoc Anglis regem signo fatearis eundem.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTranslation:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“By this sign acknowledge the same man as King of the English.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe word “eundem” — “the same man” — refers directly to the figure shown on the opposite face of the seal.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe equestrian Norman face bears:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+ HOC NORMANNORVM WILLELMVM NOSCE PATRONVM SI\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe two legends were designed to be read together, giving the approximate complete sense:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“By this sign know William as lord of the Normans; by this other sign acknowledge the same man as King of the English.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis pairing makes William’s seal particularly remarkable: the inscription itself links the two sides and presents Normandy and England as the two complementary aspects of his authority.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDesign: Enthroned Great Seal of William I\u003cbr\u003e\nPerson: William I \/ William the Conqueror\u003cbr\u003e\nTitle represented: King of England\u003cbr\u003e\nDynasty: Norman\u003cbr\u003e\nDate: 1069\u003cbr\u003e\nReign: 1066–1087\u003cbr\u003e\nPeriod: 11th-century England\u003cbr\u003e\nOriginal Seal Size: approximately 85 mm\u003cbr\u003e\nStamp Size: 50 mm\u003cbr\u003e\nMaterial: Solid brass\u003cbr\u003e\nType: Wax seal stamp \/ sealing stamp\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEach stamp is made of solid brass, supplied with a handle, and presented in a velvet pouch.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSuitable for letters, envelopes, medieval collections, Norman history displays, genealogy projects, traditional stationery and decorative sealing.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"NobleSeals","offers":[{"title":"50 mm","offer_id":58074071597396,"sku":"HIS-ENG-1069-WILLIAM-1-O-50MM","price":50.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0927\/6352\/1364\/files\/il_fullxfull.6769987360_4c5y_fc4c11b1-5f31-4fc5-bda3-390115930c14.jpg?v=1793557389","url":"https:\/\/nobleseals.co.uk\/es\/products\/william-the-conqueror-duke-of-normandy-81715","provider":"NobleSeals","version":"1.0","type":"link"}