The book displays some 1,800 coats-of-arms from all over Europe, in color, and is one of the most important sources for medieval heraldry.

The Gelre Armorial manuscript is nowadays preserved in the Royal Library of Belgium (signature code ms. 15652-5).

A copy from around 1500, produced by Cornelis Enghebrechtsz, is preserved in the library of Hoge Raad van Adel [nl].

The book also contains the oldest known depiction linking the Danish king to the red flag with white cross.

On folio page 55v of the armorial, behind the sinister horn is a lance tip with a banner, displaying a white cross on red.