My grandmother died a number of years ago and one of the things left behind was this scroll and no one knows anything about it. If anyone could shed some light on the history and purpose of it I would appreciate it.
A brief Google search would lead to the Hislop family from Scotland. Having a search of the motto, I get the following: link to discussion. House of names has a page with a very similar coat of arms. It seems like a relatively popular family name. Is it possible that her maiden name / one of her ancestors' name was Hislop?
This is a grant of arms from the Court of the Lord Lyon, which is the Scottish equivalent of the College of Arms in England. To gain a grant of arms, it was usually necessary to produce evidence of one's ancestry, as far back as the relevant person who had first been granted said arms - as well as to be able to demonstrate 'domicile' (usually, owning property or land) in the relevant jurisdiction. The Court of the Lord Lyon still exists, and has a lot more information on a) the eligibility for arms and b) how you can search their historic registers. http://www.lyon-court.com/lordlyon/221.185.html