Eastmarch

3 Las Palomas

Orinda CA 94563

11 November XII (1977)

Karina of the Far West, Laurel Queen of Arms,

to the Heralds of the five Kingdoms,

Greetings.

Although the Society now consists of five Kingdoms­­Meridies having become independent of Atenveldt­­I understand the change does not become official 'till Twelfth Night, and in any case I am not sure of the new Kingdom's boundaries. So acceptances and rejections for Meridies in this letter will be found under Atenveldt. Lord Beacon, I am sorry, you will have to sort through them; please let me know exactly which States comprise Meridies.

The following arms, devices, and badges have been accepted.

ACCEPTANCES

FOR THE KINGDOM OF THE WEST:

Akbar the Sot. Per bend Or and argent, a bend gules between in sinister chief a wolf's head erased proper and in dexter base a Douglas fir tree eradicated proper. (Pseudotsuga taxifolia)

I assume that your fir is the one for which British Columbia is best known.

Barony of the Angels. (change). Gules, a standing Seraph affronte' proper, winged Or, haloed of a laurel wreath proper.

Royal Archer, Kingdom of the West. Badge: Or, four arrows fretted sable, barbed gules.

Auberon Cirin. Or, an annulet azure, overall a swan migrant palewise proper.

Redraw the swan before using this. "Migrant" is seen from above; the head should not be twisted, but seen from above. The Welsh for "star" is not cirin but seren.

Christopher of Hoghton. Per bend sinister sable and Or, two towers counterchanged and in chief a label of three points argent.

(Or: William of Hoghton differenced for eldest son.)

Deri Otterbourn the Rover. Argent, a bend sinister purpure, overall an otter rampant sable, orbed Or, fimbriated argent.

Dove of Hoghton. Per bend sable and Or, a dove volant bendwise and a tower, counterchanged.

Simple and clear.

Elizabeth of Esvere. Argent, upon a pale azure a threaded needle Or, overall a bend counterchanged.

Elowyn Spern Gwyn. Per chevron argent and vert, in chief a hawthorn blossom and three buds slipped and leaved proper. (Crataegus calpopdendron)

This is an American species, apparently quite similar to C. o. praecox, Glastonbury thorn.

Jerald of Galloway. (change). Or, a battle­axe gules, hafted sable, within a double tressure sable.

John of the Mountain. Azure, a star of six greater and six lesser points within an orle of eight roses argent.

Leon de Asturias. Badge for House Cinqfoil. Sable, a cinquefoil azure en soleil Or.

The variations in spelling as to please Leon as to the house and Lord Codex as to the heraldic term.

Lilofée Radmilla Lerchhausen von Mähren. Sable, a lark volant to sinister beneath a chief enarched, Or.

Marcus of Shasta. Per bend sinister Or and sable, a bend sinister counterchanged between an African leopard passant sinister sable, gorged of a spiked collar and chain argent, and a bird­winged Chinese dragon passant Or, crined gules.

Needlessly complicated.

Mary Taran of Glastonbury. name change.

Formerly Tarana Wolcott of Glastonbury. No change in device.

Michaela de Neuville. Badge. A crescent Or en soleil azure.

Melisande Shadow. Sable, two cat's eyes vert pupilled sable and fimbriated argent.

Naila Kalilah. Purpure, in bend between a serpent wavy Or between a dumbeg and a pair of zils argent.

{Here there be a picture of a dumbeg.}

A dumbeg is a drum, zils are finger cymbals, both used by belly dancers.

Sweyn MacChlurain of Helsingør. Sable, a dragon counter­rampant Or, orbed and langued gules, and on a gore sinister ermine a cat sejant sable, orbed gules.

Codex says in classical heraldry a gore is never charged; very well, in SCA heraldry it may be charged and this is a point in which SCA differs from mundane heraldry. (I am not, however, going to allow everything Codex disallows just for the sake of points of difference!)

Vanessa de Linn. Azure, a lozenge throughout argent, overall two swans combattant proper.

Mary of Uffington. (reblazon). Per bend sinister sable and vert, a sword bendsinisterwise and a tower Or.

Incorrectly blazoned with an embattled field division.

FROM THE KINGDOM OF ATENVELDT (INCLUDING MERIDIES):

Andras le Lâche d'Armorique. Azure, a hyena countersalient ermine, charged on the shoulder with a heart sable.

Note correct French usage­­not "d'Armorica." Why ermine rather than proper, by the way? Crocuta crocuta is yellowish with dark spots.

Athanasius Biørnovi . Badge. Per fess counter­embowed and embowed sable and argent, to dexter a mullet trailing three comets fesswise embowed, in base a proper rose slipped and leaved fesswise counter­embowed, all counterchanged.

I took me 20 minutes to blazon this. Not bad as a badge, though not really heraldry.

A "proper rose" is what we used to call a garden rose.

Bren Malokai, the Wanderer. Argent, a cross azure voided Or, in dexter chief a sword inverted proper, in sinister base a pen palewise azure.

The cross is "throughout" by default.

Claire RosMuire St. John. Badge for Stonebridge Freehold. On a fountain, a bridge of five arches, ends couped, argent.

The suggested fimbriation vert does not help to distinguish the bridge from the fountain.

Curlew of Drogheala. Badge. Gules, a hangman's noose pendant Or.

Elrhond Windrider. Azure, a bald eagle's head erased, issuing flames from the beak and the line of erasure, all proper. (Haliaetus leucocephalus)

Gwyndalyn Pennyndown. Argent, a Pegasus passant wings erect purpure winged Or fimbriated purpure, between four quatrefoils 1, 2, 1, vert.

Gwynneth Sanquebarr. Badge. Or, a cross gurgitee sable.

(Sketch of cross gurgitee)

Herbalists' Guild, Bjørnsberg. Badge. Or, within an annulet of cloves sable a mortar and pestle gules.

Very attractive.

Koris Natterhelm. Per chevron gules and sable, in dexter chief a sword bendwise sinister, in sinister chief a single­bitted axe bendwise, both Or; in base a griffin segreant vert orbed, langued, and taloned gules, fimbriated Or.

Almost too busy.

Margherita de San Gimignano. Badge. Per bend gules and ermine, a winged unicorn rampant wings addorsed argent, armed, crined, unguled and chased Or.

Please settle on a single spelling of your name (I have given the Italian form) and use correct grammar.

Peregryne Tal Elan of Non. (formerly Talmara Theta de Non). Sable, a Non cross purpure fimbriated argent.

(This is evidently composed of two elongated and crossed 's.)

The Non Cross is certainly striking and decorative, and probably unique in heraldry. I would have expected the more complex design to be arms, and the arms to be a badge.

Badge: Azure, at the points of three piles issuant from sinister base, three peregrine falcons argent migrant toward a plate in dexter chief.

Lord Codex feels strongly about calling roundels by their assorted names; e.g. a roundel argent is a plate.

Robin the Ambivalent. Or, a robin and a robin contourne', tails crossing, proper. (Erithacus rubecula)

Statant close is the default position for birds. This is the English robin, resembling a sparrow with a red breast.

Scribes' and Illuminators' Guild, Ansteorra. Vert, a calligrapher's knife and a reed pen in saltire argent, tied with a ribbon Or.

The pen as drawn does not appear to be a quill. I can't find anything about the knife in my sources.

ikhijv l . (alias Chala Gaja). Badge. Argent, an Indian elephant passant gules winged sable.

I don't mind how many badges you have, but please, one name and one device per body!

Sue Webb. Badge for House Draumer. Argent, on a bend gules a sword inverted Or, in dexter a standing balance Or fimbriated sable.

Please may we have Sue Webb's SCA name?! We hate to register things to mundane names.

Suleszka von Pferdenthal. Or, on a bend azure two horse' heads cabossed argent.

Charges placed on a bend always follow the bend.

Telbyrne Morningstar. Or, between two double­bladed axes sable, embrued to sinister, an executioner's hood issuant from base sable, delineated Or.

I suppose I've seen worse.

Tess of Ambergeen. Badge. Argent, a crescent azure voided.

Beautiful!

Terans den Sjøfarende. change. Per bend sinister azure and gules, a drakkar's figurehead Or, orbed and garnished gules.

Originally registered with tinctures reversed.

FROM THE KINGDOM OF THE EAST:

Alphonse d'Ayr. Vert, an octopus argent orbed azure wearing a skull­cap gules; a chief invected argent.

Submitted blazoned "a zuccheto gules". But I couldn't see how an octopus could become a cardinal.

Dewi Balch. Per fess argent and vert, a leek counterchanged.

Beautiful!

Elizabeth of Leicester. Per chevron: Or, a lute in bend sinister crossed at the neck by a flute in bend, purpure' and gules, a snowy owl proper. (Nyctea sandiaca)

Draw the lute with strings facing outward, so it can be recognized for what it is. (Lutes in side view look like spoons.)

Ferran de Montfery. Argent, an escarbuncle of spears offset deasil gules.

Badge: Sable, an escarbuncle of spears offset deasil gules.

{picture}

Deasil means clockwise, or sunwise.

Geoffrey d'Ayr. Badge for the Bank of Bhakail. Or, a balance vert; a heart gules in the dexter pan overbalancing a salamander countersalient sable in the sinister pan.

We asked Geoffrey for the function of the Bank of Bhakail and got no answer; we're registering it to him as a personal badge till we find out what it does for, or to, the Barony.

Guillaume de Valgrün. Per chevron inverted azure and vert, in saltire a krummhorn Or and a quill argent.

Gwendolyn Oftputupon. Argent on a fess wavy azure between a pomme' and a patience flower proper, slipped vert, a pike naiant argent. (Impatiens sultani)

A pomme', or apple, is a roundel vert.

John the Rhymer. Azure, in chief a falcon's head couped and in base a drakkar hulk fracted, both contourne'e, argent.

Shire of Morgana. Per fess sable and vert, a sword proper; on a canton Or, a laurel wreath vert.

Manfred Gustson. Gules, in saltire an axe reversed argent and a sword inverted Or; overall a raven close proper.

Robin of Mannefeld. (reblazon). Sable mullety argent, in a cupping­glass inverted argent, a rose purpure, barbed and seeded proper.

Badge for House of the Sheltered Rose. Within a cupping­glass inverted argent fimbriated sable, a rose purpure, barbed and seeded argent.

Originally blazoned as a "cucurbit"; an artist misunderstood and drew something quite different from the bell­jar Robin had in mind.

Styrbjørg Ulfethnar Brynwulf Innis­Patrik, called Elfbolt. Argent, a demi­wolf salient proper charged upon the shoulder with an elf­bolt proper, issuing from a valknut gules. (Canis lupus occidentalis)

An elf­bolt is a flint arrowhead, concerning which there were numerous superstitions.

{sketch of elf­bolt}

{sketch of valknut}

The following are rejected.

RETURNS

FOR THE KINGDOM OF THE WEST:

Annette of Faire Monte. badge. Conflicts with the Royal Thistle of Scotland. Lord Codex comments: "Too close to a Royal Thistle; Lyon [King of Arms, in Scotland] claims 'that the flammant looks enough to be a crown'; he doesn't like it­­or anyone using THISTLES, but what can you do? If there were two or three differences???"

Charles of Saxony. Conflicts with the Order of Sainte Clos, Argent, on a pale between two swords gules, a wyvern Or. (Codex)

Friedrich Eric Helmut von Rheinhausen, badge for the alternate persona of Dymanes of Argos. Corinthian columns are forbidden, so also other classic orders. Conflicts with Benefent, Azure a column argent (Rietstaap/Virgule). The "bordure" is a tressure embattled­counter­embattled. The name of a tribe is not appropriate for an individual. Try "Dymaneus", a Dymanean, or "Dymanides", a descendant of a Dyman. In any case the form you give is plural. The effect is rather as though you were calling yourself "Saxons."

Gregory of York. Sorry we missed this before­­but you may not combine the White Rose and the surname "of York." We understand where your sympathies lie, but you are claiming too much for yourself.

Guy de Montvert. Conflicts with Elizabeth, Checky argent and vert a horse's head couped sable.

Hilary of Serendip. Conflicts with arms and badge of Caldwell, England, 1753 (Codex).

Jeanette la Rue du Cheval. Royal badges of France, York, Scotland (Virgule).

Kahina Dhabiya. badge for Arcanas (Wizards' Guild). We cannot register a Wizard's Guild any more than we can an order of friars. (Cf. Corpora 2:3.) We thought of registering it as a personal badge, but even Lord Codex finds it "too occultic", to say nothing of what Lord Clarion and I think.

Kate the Curious. Conflicts with Cata dels Vergiers: Or, a domestic cat sejant affronte' gules orbed Or between two Oriental dancer's bells gules; a bordure sable.

Käthe von Munchhausen. appeal denied. If increased variety is desired, tinctures other than blue­an­white can be used. Best of all is introduction of new charges. The dragon­kite by itself would be excellent.

LeAnna of Svart Elder. Conflicts with Stephen of the Lance: Or, a Coptic cross voided in the arms sable, within the annulet a star of four greater and four lesser points gules.

Roseland. This is not a name by itself; "Roseland" could be a place name if there were a given name to go with it. The device looks, as Lord Virgule pointed out, like an Early American tombstone. I've seen many like it, though without the Star of David.

Tara nic an Fhleisdeir. What kind of "cat­a­mount" is intended? I can't tell from the emblazon, which looks rather like a domestic cat. "Catamount" includes various species of genus Lynx and others.

William the Wanderer, resubmission. Conflicts with badge of Dorcas Dorcadas: Or, a goblet purpure jeweled proper. I suggested before that you try azure.

FROM THE MIDDLE KINGDOM:

Jahn of Outman. We do not allow impaled arms (though some have slipped past us). Make this indivisible by adding a bordure of the like, or changing the line of partition, e.g. indented or dovetailed.

Michel de Belgique. Why the label? MacCartaine of Inglerood has a label on his arms because he hoped to recruit his father into the Society (never happened); Christopher of Hoghton used his father's already registered arms with a label. A label means "eldest son of . . . "; it isn't just a pretty charge. Give me a logical reason for the label and I'll reconsider.

Purcyfaill de Danann. "De Danann" implied immediate descent from the Goddess. We are all human beings in the Society.

Rosanore of Redthorn. Infringes de Maret, Or a rose gules slipped and leaved proper (Rietstaap); and Judith the Rose, Argent a damask rose slipped and leaved proper.

Theodore von Bärheim. This is clearly two coats dimidiated. Start over.

Vladislav Arkenstone. Gems should be shown top­view. How did you obtain the heirloom of the King under the Mountain? You may not use the nickname Dracul, as it is the name of an ancient award.

Barony of Wurm Wald. Serpents do not have legs; shall I blazon this a "dragon serpentine"? Beeches have silver­gray trunks, not brown. Please draw again and resubmit. Meanwhile, I will ask Lord Codex about the current status of the division variously called "champaine" (Parker) and "urdy" (Boutell).

FROM THE KINGDOM OF THE EAST:

Moira Maureen of Green Hills. badge for House Longriding. This is too close to Grane the Golden, Sable three stalks of wheat Or. You may use this badge if you obtain Grane's written permission; I am sending you directly his last known address.

Order of the Southern Cross of Our Lady the Protectress. Adding the specific reference to a specific holy figure makes it even worse. Remember Corpora 2:3 on reference to religion . . .

I remain at you service,

/signed/

(Laurel seal) Karina of the Far West

Laurel Queen of Arms

KFW:dcm

cc: Clarion

Codex

Virgule

Steward

Postscriptum. I might have known we would forget one. This was rejected and appealed and on advise of Lord Codex, who finds several points of difference from Baur of Kitzingen, I can now pass it.

ADDITIONAL ACCEPTANCE

Johann Heinrich Michael Siemon von Wernigerode. Azure, in chief four chevronelles interlaced and in base three chevronelles interlaced Or, overall six estoiles of eight points Or pierced gules, the lowermost within the center chevronelle.

Sometime known as J. H. M. S. aus, ausser, bei, mit, nach, seit, von und zu Wernigerode, but not in the Armorial.