Society for Creative Anachronism
College of Arms
For the November 2024 meetings, printed January 8, 2025
To all the College of Arms and all others who may read this missive, from Birgitta Laurel, Sara Pelican, and Iago Wreath, greetings.
SENA A2B2 discusses various patterns for the formation of period charges. Though this list is not intended to be exhaustive, there are some common patterns that come up often enough that we feel they are worth including. We therefore direct Palimpsest to create a Rules Letter to discuss the addition of Buildings and Symbols to SENA A2B2 as "patterns that have been documented".
Our standard guideline for blazoning multiply-divided fields is to blazon the dexter-chiefmost section first. This, however, gives inconsistent results when blazoning the divisions pily barry and pily bendy sinister, and has also been applied inconsistently to them. Since these divisions are equivalent to per pale indented throughout and per bend indented throughout respectively, they should be blazoned so that that equivalence is consistent, and so that emblazons can be reliably reproduced from the blazon. To that end, going forward we will blazon:
pily so that the first tincture named is that of the piles issuing from chief (current practice),
pily bendy so that the first tincture named is that of the piles issuing from dexter chief (current practice),
pily barry so the first tincture named is that of the piles issuing from dexter, and
pily bendy sinister so that the first tincture named is that of the piles issuing from sinister chief.
Registered items affected by this change are reblazoned on this Letter.
This month marks the beginning of a project to consider reblazons for armory that uses the blazon term in annulo.
In annulo describes an arrangement of charges, and implies nothing about the orientation of those charges. Absent any further information in the blazon, it should be assumed that all of the charges are in their default orientation. There are many ways the orientation of the charges can be blazoned to show they are not in their default orientation - feet to center, points outward, vorant of each others' tails, conjoined (for long charges), and an annulet of charges in annulo - the latter of which describes an emblazon where the charges lie with their long axis tangential to the circumference of the circle formed by the charges. A review of registered emblazons using in annulo shows a lot of inconsistency in the orientation of charges in that arrangement, some being arranged to follow a circle and others in their default orientations.
In annulo is also used in past registrations to describe arrangements that are better blazoned in other ways. As noted on the August 2019 Cover Letter:
Two charges cannot be arranged "in annulo" as their relative placement is more accurately described as "in pale," "in bend," "in fess," etc. Likewise, three charges cannot be arranged "in annulo" as their placement can be more accurately described as "one and two" or the default for three charges, "two and one." And four charges cannot be arranged "in annulo" when "in cross" or "in saltire" are more accurate descriptions.
Not all registered emblazons with an "in annulo" made up of two, three, or four charges can be described more accurately in this way, but many can be.
The first batch of items with ambiguous or inaccurate blazons are reblazoned on this letter to clarify the arrangement and orientation of charges, and more will be reblazoned as time permits.
A submission this month caused us to consider how we treat conjoined charges. We have in the past returned or redrawn armory with even small amounts of overlap between the conjoined charges. This does maintain the purity of the distinction between conjoined and overall, but at the cost of submitters and artists reducing the amount of contact between conjoined charges to single points, which is problematic in its own way and often draws complaints in commentary.
Going forward, we will allow conjoined charges to overlap if:
The amount of overlap is small,
Both charges are clearly identifiable, and
The arrangement is clearly identifiable as conjoined rather than arrangements such as overall, entwined, or braced.
A submission was pended for redraw this month for using a modern-style drawing of a bear's head. We can do no better than to quote a similar decision on the November 2017 Cover Letter:
However, the root cause of the shading was the use of a modern depiction of the bear's head, which raises a larger issue for submissions. SENA A2C1 requires that "Elements must be drawn in their period forms and in a period armorial style... Depictions that are excessively modern may be returned. This includes, but is not limited to: depictions from comic books and video games, the use of post-1600 art techniques like Impressionism or pointillism, and fantasy art from book covers." While we generally give substantial leeway for artistic license, the particular stylizations of light and shadow used in late 20th and early 21st century art, especially the kinds of animal heads used in sports logos, move beyond distracting to grounds for return.
Alongside the shading, such "sports logo" style typically involves heads in an affronty posture, often with their mouths open wide in a very active-looking roar.
Such artwork will be pended for redraw on a case-by-case basis. As we noted on the above-quoted Cover Letter:
We appreciate the struggles submitters and consulting heralds face when attempting to compile artwork for submission, so we are not at this time issuing a blanket ban on modern depictions of animals and animal heads. However, we caution that submitted artwork should not have excessive shading, especially depicted in solid black, and that care should be taken to find the best available artwork for the task at hand.
SENA Appendix G1 states that there is a step from core practice for the use of "complex machines known to Europeans". We no longer restrict heraldic charges to things known to Europeans in period, therefore this step from core practice is updated to "complex machines known in period". The revised wording will be available at https://heraldry.sca.org/sena.html#AppendixG1 within a few days.
The various proposed updates to SENA on Palimpsest's August 31st Rules Letter are accepted. These include:
SENA A3B4a, Placement of Charges - clarifying contrast requirements when a field is divided,
SENA A3D2, Simplicity of Charge Groups - adding a new section, Unity of Arrangement,
SENA A5G6, Change of Arrangement Within a Charge Group - adding information on how to determine if a change in arrangement is forced, and
SENA Appendix I4, Overall Charge Group - allowing multiple charges in the same overall charge group.
Armory that appeared on a Letter of Intent dated prior to January 1, 2025 will be considered under either the previous rules or these new rules, whichever benefits the submitter.
A submission this month caused us to consider what leaf category ginkgo leaves fall into. Reviewing photos of leaves in nature, as well as past registrations of ginkgo leaves, we will consider them to be in a new category: fan-shaped leaves. We direct Palimpsest to update SENA Appendix M1j with this information.
Registration of First Nations and Indigenous given names is a complex topic with the possibility of doing significant harm with a well-meaning, but ultimately ill-informed decision. The aim of the College is to treat living minority cultures with respect, and ensure that we are acting from a place of scholarship, and not appropriation. At this time, we require more input from those people who are familiar with both indigenous cultures and the SCA, so that any decision we make is well-informed and respectful.
We thank those who took the time to comment on the August 25th LoPaD. We will not be proposing a rules update at this time, but will consult with subject matter experts before devising a new proposal.
Starting from April 2025, we will no longer register spákona (prophetess) as a byname. Evidence was presented during commentary that the byname spákona was, much like its synonyms v{o,}lva and v{o,}lu, a byname that constitutes a claim to supernatural or magical powers [01/2022 CL]. Per SENA PN4C, we do not register such names. Names containing the above-mentioned byname that are currently in process are not affected by this ruling.
Palimpsest is directed to add this information to Standard Source "Errata" under Geirr Bassi and "Viking Bynames found in the Landnámabók" by Aryanhwy merch Catmael.
We have an increasing number of requests for gender-neutral or non-binary names. While it is possible to create such names for some languages and cultures, it is not currently possible for all languages and cultures. Research in this area continues.
In highly gendered languages such as Old Norse and Gaelic, the grammatical gender of the byname must match the gender of the given name. In these languages, one cannot create a gender-neutral name by combining a male given name with a grammatically female byname (or vice versa). For example, in Gaelic, a female given name cannot use a byname in the form mac X. In Old Norse, a grammatically female byname such as inn glađa cannot be used with a male given name such as Gunnr. The gender within such names must be internally consistent.
Submitters are reminded that sources which do not appear in Appendix H of the Administrative Handbook require screenshots or scans of the relevant information.
We note with sadness the passing of Haakon Bjornson on July 11, 2024. Haakon, Gold Axe Herald Extraordinary, held many heraldic offices, including Triskele Principle Herald. The Society is poorer for his loss and richer for having had him. May his memory be a blessing to all who knew him.
Similarly, we note with sadness the passing of Mistress Flanna Dunwalton, OL, OP, Stellanordica Herald emerita of the Principality of Oertha, on December 9, 2024.
On a brighter note, on December 14 at Bhakail Yule Revel Their Majesties Matthew and Fiamuin welcomed Dame Scolastica la souriete to the Order of the Silver Crescent, the East's grant-level service award, for her years of heraldic research and helping submitters.
And on January 4, 2025, at the Barony of Caerthe's 12th Night in the kingdom of the Outlands, Their Majesties Hawkrill and Adrien made Andreas von Meißen, Palmer Herald (administrative and emergency deputy to the Principal Herald), a Companion of the Order of Defense.
Please send information about happenings to major heralds and major happenings to all heralds to Laurel, so that it can be published here.
Letters of Intent, Comment, Response, Correction, et cetera are to be posted to the OSCAR online system. No paper copies need be sent. All submission forms plus documentation, including petitions, must be uploaded to the OSCAR packet for that letter. For armory, only colored forms are required.
Cheques or money orders for submissions, payable to "SCA Inc.-College of Arms" are to be sent to Trent Le Clair, 928 Frazier Dr, Walla Walla, WA 99362.
Send roster changes and corrections to Laurel. College of Arms members may also request a copy of the current roster from Laurel.
To subscribe to the mailings of the LoAR, please see the bottom of https://heraldry.sca.org/heraldry/lists.html#lists for more instructions.
For all administrative matters, please contact Laurel.
Items listed below in square brackets have not been scheduled yet. For information about future scheduling, please review the status table located on the Web at https://oscar.sca.org/index.php?action=137.
The November Laurel decisions were made at the Pelican meeting held on Sunday, November 10, 2024 and the Wreath meeting held on Saturday, November 9, 2024. These meetings considered the following letters of intent: Calontir (04 Aug, 2024), Meridies (07 Aug, 2024), Gleann Abhann (11 Aug, 2024), Laurel (15 Aug, 2024), An Tir (19 Aug, 2024), Northshield (19 Aug, 2024), Northshield (20 Aug, 2024), Laurel LoPaD (25 Aug, 2024), Caid (26 Aug, 2024), Ealdormere (26 Aug, 2024), East (27 Aug, 2024), Ćthelmearc (28 Aug, 2024), Ansteorra (29 Aug, 2024), Caid (29 Aug, 2024), Lochac (29 Aug, 2024), Outlands (29 Aug, 2024), Atenveldt (30 Aug, 2024), Drachenwald (30 Aug, 2024), Middle (30 Aug, 2024), Trimaris (30 Aug, 2024), Palimpsest Rules Letter (31 Aug, 2024), Laurel LoPfR (18 Sep, 2024), Laurel LoPfR (04 Oct, 2024). All commentary, responses, and rebuttals should have been entered into OSCAR by Thursday, October 31, 2024.
The December Laurel decisions were made at the Pelican meeting held on Sunday, December 15, 2024 and the Wreath meeting held on Sunday, December 8, 2024. These meetings considered the following letters of intent: Calontir (03 Sep, 2024), An Tir (07 Sep, 2024), Atlantia (08 Sep, 2024), Meridies (08 Sep, 2024), Gleann Abhann (15 Sep, 2024), Palimpsest Rules Letter (15 Sep, 2024), Artemisia (18 Sep, 2024), Laurel LoItUP (20 Sep, 2024), Middle (22 Sep, 2024), Avacal (25 Sep, 2024), Ansteorra (26 Sep, 2024), Ćthelmearc (28 Sep, 2024), An Tir (29 Sep, 2024), Palimpsest Rules Letter (29 Sep, 2024), West (29 Sep, 2024), Atlantia (30 Sep, 2024), Caid (30 Sep, 2024), Drachenwald (30 Sep, 2024), Ealdormere (30 Sep, 2024), East (30 Sep, 2024), Laurel LoPaD (30 Sep, 2024), Lochac (30 Sep, 2024), Outlands (30 Sep, 2024), Laurel LoPfR (24 Oct, 2024). All commentary, responses, and rebuttals should have been entered into OSCAR by Saturday, November 30, 2024.
The January Laurel decisions will be made at the Pelican meeting held on Sunday, January 12, 2025, and the Wreath meeting held on Saturday, January 11, 2025. These meetings will consider the following letters of intent: Ealdormere (01 Oct, 2024), Calontir (03 Oct, 2024), Laurel LoPaD (03 Oct, 2024), Meridies (10 Oct, 2024), An Tir (11 Oct, 2024), Gleann Abhann (13 Oct, 2024), Artemisia (17 Oct, 2024), Ansteorra (28 Oct, 2024), Ealdormere (28 Oct, 2024), Lochac (29 Oct, 2024), Atenveldt (30 Oct, 2024), Drachenwald (30 Oct, 2024), Outlands (30 Oct, 2024), Palimpsest Rules Letter (30 Oct, 2024), Ćthelmearc (31 Oct, 2024), East (31 Oct, 2024), Middle (31 Oct, 2024), Palimpsest Rules Letter (31 Oct, 2024), Trimaris (31 Oct, 2024), Laurel LoPfR (26 Nov, 2024). All commentary, responses, and rebuttals should have been entered into OSCAR by Tuesday, December 31, 2024.
Not all letters of intent may be considered when they are originally scheduled on this cover letter. The date of posting of the LoI, date of receipt of the Laurel packet, or other factors may delay consideration of certain letters of intent. Additionally, some letters of intent received may not have been scheduled because the administrative requirements (receipt of the forms packet, receipt of the necessary fees, et cetera) have not yet been met.
REMINDER: Until all administrative requirements are met, the letter may not be scheduled.
Be assured that I remain
In service
Birgitta Lulli
Laurel Queen of Arms
Created at 2025-01-08T20:38:16