Right to bear arms? Trump accused of plagiarising family crest
By Joel Gunter
BBC News, Washington DC
4 hours ago
The Trump Organization made only one change: replacing the word "Integrity" with the word "Trump"
It may not be the most dramatic scandal facing Donald Trump this week, but the US president has been accused of branding his US commercial properties with a stolen coat of arms.
Mr Trump's heraldic crest is a near-identical copy of one registered in 1939 by Joseph Edward Davies, the New York Times reported. The copy, printed on everything from golf carts to socks, made a single small change: where the original said "Integritas", now it says "Trump".
Davies was an American diplomat and husband to Marjorie Merriweather Post, who built the Mar-a-Lago resort that now belongs to the president, and where presumably he first saw the coat of arms. The similarity was spotted by Davies' grandson, former US senator Joseph Tydings, on a visit to the resort. He told the Times he had not given permission to the Trump Organization to use the crest.
It drew the attention of heraldic officials in Scotland when Mr Trump attempted to brand a new golf course in Aberdeen with the adulterated crest. They noticed that he hadn't registered it with the Court of the Lord Lyon, which approves all applications for arms and has authority to litigate against anyone using a design improperly.
More:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-40097665
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