The official Penzance Coat of Arms was granted by the Kings Arms (College of Arms) in 1934. The original Latin motto ‘Quod Improbum Terret Probo Prodest’ translates as:
‘For the Reward of the Good and the Dread and Terror of the Bad’ in English
or
‘Tebeldra A Eutheg Tra Vas A Wober’ in Cornish.
The Penzance Coat of Arms is made up of several elements that represent different areas of the parish:
The lamb and flag on the shield was the tin stamp used by the smelting house at Gulval village to mark its blocks of tin.
The Maltese cross, at the bottom of the shield, represents Madron and its connections with the Knights of St John.
At the top of the shield – the crossed keys of St Peter, the sword of St Paul and the cross of St Andrew represent Newlyn and the village of Paul.
The importance of Penzance as a major port is represented by a ship with all guns firing; a fisherman carrying a net; and a pirate holding a cutlass. The pirate also celebrates the town’s famous association with Gilbert & Sullivan’s opera The Pirates of Penzance.
Penzance translates from the Cornish Pennsans as ‘Holy Head’.
The head of St John the Baptist, patron saint of Penzance, featured on the town’s old common seal, which was adopted in 1614.
It was used as the Penzance Coat of Arms until the current Coat of Arms was adopted in 1934.
The image of St John the Baptist is still used on the seal of the Town Council and on the Mayoral Chain, and and can also be seen on the north side of the Market House building.
