Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland

Institutional Heraldry of the World : United Kingdom Scotland

Origin/meaning

The arms were officially granted in 1994.

The shield shows a golden maunch, a medieval sleeve which is a traditional heraldic device and coincidentally colonic in shape. The silver border suggests colonic haustrations. James Thomson, Honorary Secretary at the time, requested a Lockhart-Mummery probe in the shield centre.

The crest features John of Arderne (1307–1392), a medieval surgeon from Newark and the “father of coloproctology”, representing the evolution of the ACPGBI from its origins in the Section. This was based on an Elizabethan depiction of the trade, see below, which was proposed as a crest, but was 'censored' in the final grant by removing the patient. The College of Arms described the left index finger as “imbrued” (stained), and did not specify of where it had actually been.

The motto was conjured in 1991. Translated, ‘Porro a Tergo’ is, aptly, “Forwards from Behind.”

Literature: Brown, S.R. et al: Thirty years of the Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland. Congress article, 2020.

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