St. Asaph.
_The Broad Arrow_ (Vol. iv., pp. 315. 371. 412.; Vol. v., p. 115.).--I
can see nothing to connect this symbol with the worship of Mithras, but
I have always fancied it of much earlier date than that commonly
assigned to it. A coin of Carausius with a Greek legend would be an
object of great interest to our English numismatists, but nothing of the
kind has ever been seen! My reason for thinking that the symbol of the
"broad arrow" is one of considerable antiquity is, that the name by
which sailors and "longshore" people designate it, namely, the "Broad
Ar," is clearly not a vulgarism, but an archaism. In the north of
England "ar" or "arr" is still used for a mark. It occurs on very early
Danish coins, and I entertained a hope that some northern antiquary
would have told me how it originated; but my enquiry has ended in
disappointment. Query, When was the Pheon, which it is supposed to be,
first used as an heraldic device? I have before me a coin of Stralsund,
minted in the fourteenth century, with the Pheon for the principal type.
By German writers this object is called a fishspear, but I cannot help
thinking that its origin may be connected with the broad arrow.