Or (heraldry) in the context of "Argent"

The flag of Europe or European flag consists of twelve golden stars forming a circle on a blue field. It was designed and adopted in 1955 by the Council of Europe (CoE) as a symbol for the whole of Europe.

Since 1985, the flag has also been a symbol of the European Union (EU), whose 27 member states are all also CoE members, although in that year the EU had not yet assumed its present name or constitutional form (which came in steps in 1993 and 2009). Adoption by the EU, or EC as it then was, reflected a long-standing CoE desire to see the flag used by other European organisations. Official EU use widened greatly in the 1990s. Nevertheless, the flag has to date received no status in any of the EU's treaties. Its adoption as an official symbol was planned as part of the 2004 Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe but this failed to be ratified. Mention of the flag was removed in 2007 from the text of the Treaty of Lisbon, which was ratified. On the other hand, 16 EU members that year, plus France in 2017, have officially affirmed (by Declaration No. 5224) their attachment to the flag as an EU symbol.

The fleur-de-lis, also spelled fleur-de-lys (plural fleurs-de-lis or fleurs-de-lys), is a common heraldic charge in the (stylized) shape of a lily (in French, fleur and lis mean 'flower' and 'lily' respectively). Most notably, the fleur-de-lis is depicted on the flag of Quebec and on the traditional coat of arms of France that was used from the High Middle Ages until the French Revolution in 1792, and then again in brief periods in the 19th century. This design still represents France and the House of Bourbon in the form of marshalling on the arms of other countries, including Spain, Quebec and Canada.

Other European nations have also employed the symbol. The fleur-de-lis became "at one and the same time, religious, political, dynastic, artistic, emblematic, and symbolic", especially in French heraldry. The Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph are among saints often depicted with a lily.

Tinctures are the colours, metals, and furs used in heraldry. There are nine tinctures in common use: two metals, five colours, and two furs. The metals are or (gold or yellow) and argent (silver or white); the colours gules (red), azure (blue), vert (green), sable (black), and purpure (purple); and the furs ermine, which is derived from the winter fur of a stoat, and vair, which is derived from the fur of a red squirrel. The use of other tinctures varies depending on the time period and heraldic tradition in question.

Where the tinctures are not depicted in full colour, they may be represented using one of several systems of hatching, in which each tincture is assigned a distinct pattern, or tricking, in which each tincture is designated by a letter or abbreviation.

The coat of arms of Norway is the arms of dominion of King Harald V of Norway, and as such represents both the monarch and the kingdom (nation and the state). It depicts a standing golden lion on a red background, bearing a golden crown and axe with silver blade (blazoned Gules, a lion rampant Or, crowned Or, holding an axe Or with a blade argent).

The coat of arms is used by the King (including the King's Council), the Parliament, and the Supreme Court, which are the three powers according to the Constitution. It is also used by several national, regional, and local authorities that are subordinate to the aforementioned, for example the County Governors and both the district courts and the courts of appeal. Since 1905, two parallel versions exist: the more elaborate version used by the King and the simpler one used by the State. The arms in banner form serve as basis for the monarch's flag, known as the Royal Standard.

The flag of the Holy Roman Empire was not a national flag, but rather an imperial banner used by the Holy Roman Emperor; black and gold were used as the colours of the imperial banner, a black eagle on a golden background. After the late 13th or early 14th century, the claws and beak of the eagle were coloured red. From the early 15th century, a double-headed eagle was used.

In 1804, Napoleon Bonaparte declared the First French Empire. In response to this, Emperor Francis II of the Habsburg dynasty declared his personal domain to be the Austrian Empire and became Francis I of Austria. Taking the colours of the banner of the Holy Roman Emperor, the flag of the Austrian Empire was black and gold. Francis II was the last Holy Roman Emperor, with Napoleon forcing the empire's dissolution in 1806. After this point, these colours continued to be used as the flag of Austria until 1918.