Heirloom
In popular usage, an heirloom is something that has been passed down for generations through family members. Examples are a family bible, antiques, weapons or jewellery.[1]
The term originated with the historical principle of an heirloom in English law, a chattel which by immemorial usage was regarded as annexed by inheritance to a family estate. Loom originally meant a tool. Such genuine heirlooms were almost unknown by the beginning of the twentieth century.[2]
English legal history
In the English legal system, any owner of a genuine heirloom could dispose of it during his lifetime, but he could not
A heirloom in the strict sense was made by family custom, not by settlement. A settled chattel could be sold under the direction of the court, and the money arising under such sale is
Southeast Asia
The Javanese warrior-king
In literature
The plot of the Anthony Trollope novel The Eustace Diamonds hinges on the heirloomic status (or not) of a diamond necklace.
See also
References
- ^ Taylor, Maureen A. (2003). Ancestry Magazine: Nov-Dec 2003. Ancestry Magazine. p. 35.
- ^ a b c public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Heirloom". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 13 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 217. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the
- ^ Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996, s.2
- Settled Land Act 1882
- ^ Re Hope, Dr Cello v. Hope [1899] 2 Ch. 679