The Kings of Heralds were given Royal Commissions by the Sovereign to go round various counties of England. They had to record who was entitled to coats of arms, what those were and how they were inherited. Incredibly most of their records have survived, some were copied and those copies survived. And in a continuing process from 1870 odd the copies and, latterly, the master copies have been published.
You would think that a commission from the crown would entail considerable concern for accuracy. But the standards had not been established in the opening visitations in the 16th century so some very odd records are to be found. Here's two of them:
Just in case you are wondering, a King of Heralds is one who is in charge of other heralds.