|
Burke’s
General Armory ascribes
the arms "Ermine on a
chevron Gules three
annulets Or" with a
crest of "A human heart
Or, charged with a rose
Gules" to "Rigg (Co.
Cumberland)" without
giving further details.
The same arms with a
crest of "A cock Sable
combed and wattled
Gules" are ascribed to
"Rigg
(Chorlton-on-Medlock,
co. Lancaster, 1875)".
The original Fairbairn
editions ascribes this
Crest to "Rigg of
Chorlton-on-Medlock,
Lancs.".
The
cockerel reappears, as a
crest, in the arms of
Rigg of Dounfield, Fife,
Rigsland, Scotland and
Rigg (Rigsland,
afterwards Morton,
Scotland). The crest
also appears in an
unattributed coat for
Rigg viz: Arms: Argent a
chevron between three
mullets Sable. Crest: A
cock Sable combed and
wattled Gules. Motto:
Virtute et labore.
It
would seem therefore
that the crest of a cock
is a common feature of
Rigg (and variant) arms
however, it does not
appear to feature in the
actual arms, being only
the crest. The Rigg
family of Westmorland
and in particular Lt Col
Hugh Rigg of the HEIC
Indian Army, Sheriff of
Westmorland and Deputy
Lieutenant of
Westmorland, utilised a
Sable cock as the family
emblem. The armiger is a
direct descendant
(great, great grandson)
of Lt Co Rigg and his
wife Margaret Carthew.
These
arms were created to
incorporate design
elements from the
Cumberland and
Lancashire families but
with sufficient
differences to indicate
no known relationship.
The Marri nuts (Corymbia
calophylla) are the
fruit of a variety of
eucalyptus that is
native to the area where
the armiger’s family
farm was located and
where he grew up. The
nuts are iconic; known
by local children as
honkey nuts and the
armiger fondly remembers
waging honkey nut wars
at school, throwing the
hard nuts at each other
and getting themselves
into trouble with the
teachers!
The
surname Rigg comes from
the Old English word
rigge, or the Old
English word hrycg, both
of which mean ridge. It
is possible that the
chevron in the arms of
the original armigerous
families alludes to a
ridge and the armiger
has added a grassy mound
to the crest to add to
this reference.
The
Rigg family of Western
Australia, the only
direct descendants of Lt
Col Hugh Rigg and
Margaret Carthew of
Crossrigg Hall, are a
prominent family, well
regarded in the Harvey
Shire and surrounding
district, being
especially well known
for farming practice
innovation and sporting
prowess.
|
