Why does heraldry fail?

[-JKP-]

Koen.

No, it's a sea snake. Esthetically, it does approach the definition of being slightly bulbous at times, due to the flattened shape of the snake, but at no time does it ever have a consistent and uniform pattern along its length. The individual forms start small and become larger.

And even if it were a perfect match, that does not address the problem of the etymological origin of the terminology. If the name for the line derives from a snake, why is it called 'nebuly' = 'cloudy' and not called 'snaky'? The origin of the name denotes the ideological source - otherwise, what purpose does language serve?

The nebuly line represents things of celestial associations (angels, divinities, rulers (who promoted themselves as divine)) and the shapes are often clouds with broadly scalloped edges (technically not wavy or tight enough to be nebuly) that later were drawn more iconically as nebuly, but the curvy shape itself might be inspired by any different influences even if it represents a cloud.


Something I noticed, after education became more common in Europe, and nobility were finding it harder and harder to proclaim themselves as divine beings (demi-gods), that the ruffled collar became very popular among the higher strata of society. I haven't researched the origin of this uncomfortable-looking and difficult-to-make-and-clean ruff, but I'm very suspicious that it was developed to mimic a nebuly, a "head emerging above the clouds"—a subliminal association with divinity:

 
Queen Elizabeth I