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| | Baton Sinister | Variants: Baton Sinister, Baston, Batton, Battoon, Batune, Fissure, Bar of Bastardy., Bastardy-Bar of | | Also termed a Fissure. A mark of illegitimacy, is a diminutive of the bend sinister, being one fourth its breadth. It does not extend all the way to the edges of the shield; and may be borne either plain or charged. The Baton has been adopted since the fifteenth century, in England, to mark the illegitimate descendants of the Royal Family only; before which time no positive rule prevailed, since the more ancient ways of marking illegitimacy were by the Bend, either placing the Father's arms thereon or debruising them by it; the Border was also used as a mark of bastardy. | | Elvin Plate Reference: p. 19 n. 27 |
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