Society for Creative Anachronism
College of Arms
For the April 2024 meetings, printed June 6, 2024
To all the College of Arms and all others who may read this missive, from Birgitta Laurel, Elisabetta Pelican, and Iago Wreath, greetings.
Greetings, Cousins. As you all know, the SCA College of Arms website (heraldry.sca.org) has been in dire need of an update for several years. I am looking for folks to assist in this process. If you are passionate about a specific topic, or if you would like to commit to working on specific sections please send an email to [email protected] or [email protected] with an introduction and a few sentences about your experience and area of expertise by June 20th, 2024. We especially need people who would like to evaluate articles for continued relevance and links for broken or outdated information.
Shoutout to Mathghamhain Ua Ruadháin for creating test environments on this project!
Cordially,
Wu Clarion
A submission this month caused us to examine how we assess difference between fields gyronny of three arrondi and other radial three part divisions. Though SENA A5F1b says that gyronny (any number of pieces) is substantially different from any other division, it is not reasonable to apply this to gyronny of three, as any emblazon would be indistinguishable from one or the other of per pall or per pall inverted; just as a hypothetical gyronny of four would be indistinguishable from either quarterly or per saltire. We direct Palimpsest to create a Rules Letter to update SENA A5F1b to clarify this.
Considering whether there may be a DC between the arrondi versions of gyronny of three, per pall, and per pall inverted, precedent says: "we will not consider [gyronny of three arrondi] significantly different from per pall arrondi or per pall inverted arrondi." [Amaryllis le Pouke, 06/2013, R-Caid]. In general, we emblazon these in different ways -- gyronny of three arrondi with lines that spiral from the edge of the shield to the center, and per pall (inverted) arrondi with simple arched lines joining the edge of the shield to the center -- so it is worth revisiting whether some difference should be granted.
The period arms of Megentzer, which use a gyronny of three arrondi division, are well-represented in period armorials. An examination of some of these emblazons shows a wide range in the degree of spiral used, including one (from the Stammbuch of Ulrich Reutter (Nürnberg, Germanisches Nationalmuseum, Bibliothek, [Tresor] Hs 121165), f. 145r) which is well within the range of what we'd consider per pall inverted arrondi instead. Based on this evidence, we are explicitly upholding the 2013 precedent, and granting no difference between gyronny of three arrondi and per pall arrondi or per pall inverted arrondi.
Finally, we need to consider how to compare the tinctures between sections of the field. For these spiral-type divisions, mapping sections on one piece of armory to an equivalent section on another is complicated: where a section meets the edge of the field, and which area of the field it primarily lies on, are dependent on the degree of spiral. This is also a problem found in period. Looking again at the arms of Megentzer, there is very little consistency in the order the tinctures appear, the places where they meet the edge of the shield, the area of the field they primarily occupy, or the direction of spiral. In order to apply consistent guidelines in comparing tinctures in this type of division, we will place primary consideration on which tinctures lie on which portions of the edges of the shield.
On the August 2023 Cover Letter we ruled that three or more wolf's teeth are equivalent to a field division for the purposes of conflict. Though this interpretation aligns with period practice, it does make for unlikely interpretations in more complex situations, so we are amending the August 2023 decision. Wolf's teeth do not need to be considered as field divisions when they are part of a primary charge group with other charges (including another set of wolf's teeth), when they are on a divided field, nor when they are in a non-primary charge group. In these cases, they only need to be considered as charges.
Palimpsest's January 5th Rules Letter which proposed revisions to SENA A6F is accepted with some modifications based on commentary. The revised wording will be available at https://heraldry.sca.org/sena.html#A6 within a few days. Of particular interest to conflict checkers is the new section A6F4 which provides some examples of how the sections of A6F are used to determine if the submitted armory has the appearance of marshalling under SENA.
On last month's Cover Letter item From Wreath: Interlaced, Braced, Fretted, Enfiled, and Transfixed, in the description of Interlaced we used the example a triquetra braced with an annulet. This should, of course, have read a triquetra interlaced with an annulet.
In last month's registration of Beatrix Funteyn's badge (Fieldless) A thornbush blasted proper, we did not define what the proper tincture is. It is brown, and we direct Palimpsest to add this information to Table 4 of the Glossary of Terms.
The list of peripheral ordinaries in SENA Appendix I2a is missing the gore, the gusset, and the triple tressure. The appendix is updated to include these. The revised wording will be available within the next few days at https://heraldry.sca.org/sena.html#AppendixI2a. We thank Ollivier Le Floch for bringing this omission to our attention.
A submission this month caused us to consider how we treat displayed for the purposes of conflict. Displayed is a unique posture - birds displayed are often distorted, with unnaturally long necks and/or legs, and the posture hides a lot of identifying details of body shape. To balance the notable differences in appearance between birds in different categories with the identifiability issues that come with the displayed posture, we are adopting the following guidelines, which we request Palimpsest to add to Appendix M1d:
There is not an SC between birds displayed.
There is generally a DC between birds displayed which are in different categories if they are emblazoned in a way that makes the category clear.
Birds displayed which are in the same category will conflict with each other.
The January 4th and January 31st Rules Letters proposed changes to how we treat names of historical and Society-wide orders when considering if a non-personal name is a claim to rank. Both proposals, with changes based on commentary, are accepted. The updated version of NPN4B2 - Names of Society-Wide Orders and Historical Orders will be available at https://heraldry.sca.org/sena.html#NPN4B2 within the next few days.
This month we noted several submissions where forms between an internal and external Letter of Intent did not match. We take this moment to remind submissions heralds of the guidelines provided by the Administrative Handbook IV.C.1.e:
If names, blazons, or documentation are changed by kingdom, the forms do not need to be altered to match the information submitted on the Letter of Intent. If the forms are altered, kingdoms should not remove or black out information that the submitter has given (original spellings of names and blazons of armory). Drawing a single line through an original blazon or name is acceptable so long as the original information can still be read and understood.
Questions about this policy should be directed to the Laurel Sovereign of Arms.
On April 20, 2024, Queen Iglesia awarded the Lochac Order of Grace to Gwen verch David. Gwen is a Pursuivant and long-time voice and court herald.
On May 4, 2024, at Atlantia's Spring Crown Tournament with the permission of Their Atlantian Majesties Christoph and Adelhait, Gisela Triton raised Geoffrey d'Ayr of Montalban, quondam Brigantia and currently Coral Branch Herald (exchequer for the Atlantian College of Heralds) to the rank of Herald Extraordinary.
On May 11, 2024, at Barony Beyond the Mountain Investiture and East Kingdom Armoured Champions Tourney, Their Majesties of the East Tindal and Emerson granted entrance into the Order of the Maunche to Sisuile Butler, long-time consulting herald and Pennsic Heralds Point volunteer. The Order of the Maunche is the East Kingdom's grant-level award for Arts & Sciences.
On May 18, 2024, Kean de Lacy and Hannah the Storyteller, both pursuivants at large, were invested as Prince and Princess of the Mists.
Regretfully, we note the passing on 15 May 2024 of our own Count Jehan de la Marche. He was a talented linguist and a pursuivant at large who specialized in many of the period dialects of Europe, as well as ceremonies and court and tournament heraldry. For many years, he had been a constant presence at Pennsic Heralds' Point, including as recently as last year, where his languages and onomastic expertise and his ability to wrinkle out exactly what a submitter really wished made him an invaluable resource. Due to a quirk of his parents, both linguists, he was also perhaps the only person in modern times who had Middle English as his first language. He will be deeply missed.
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 April Laurel decisions were made at the Pelican meeting held on Sunday, April 14, 2024 and the Wreath meeting held on Saturday, April 13, 2024. These meetings considered the following letters of intent: Ealdormere (24 Dec, 2023) (pushed due to lack packet uploaded), Palimpsest Rules Letter (04 Jan, 2024), Palimpsest Rules Letter (05 Jan, 2024), Laurel LoPaD (07 Jan, 2024), Meridies (09 Jan, 2024), Northshield (09 Jan, 2024), Artemisia (19 Jan, 2024), East (21 Jan, 2024), Atenveldt (25 Jan, 2024), West (25 Jan, 2024), Outlands (26 Jan, 2024), An Tir (28 Jan, 2024), Ansteorra (28 Jan, 2024), Ansteorra (29 Jan, 2024), Ealdormere (30 Jan, 2024), Lochac (30 Jan, 2024), Atlantia (31 Jan, 2024), Drachenwald (31 Jan, 2024), Middle (31 Jan, 2024), Palimpsest Rules Letter (31 Jan, 2024), Laurel LoPaD (14 Mar, 2024) (redraws). All commentary, responses, and rebuttals should have been entered into OSCAR by Sunday, March 31, 2024.
The May Laurel decisions were made at the Pelican meeting held on Sunday, May 12, 2024 and the Wreath meeting held on Saturday, May 11, 2024. These meetings considered the following letters of intent: Middle (01 Feb, 2024), An Tir (05 Feb, 2024), Northshield (05 Feb, 2024), Calontir (06 Feb, 2024), Palimpsest Rules Letter (07 Feb, 2024), Meridies (08 Feb, 2024), Artemisia (11 Feb, 2024), Caid (11 Feb, 2024), Laurel LoPaD (13 Feb, 2024), Palimpsest Rules Letter (14 Feb, 2024), Gleann Abhann (20 Feb, 2024), Ansteorra (23 Feb, 2024), East (25 Feb, 2024), An Tir (26 Feb, 2024), Outlands (26 Feb, 2024), Ansteorra (27 Feb, 2024), Atenveldt (27 Feb, 2024), Ealdormere (27 Feb, 2024), Lochac (27 Feb, 2024), Avacal (29 Feb, 2024), Drachenwald (29 Feb, 2024), Middle (29 Feb, 2024), Laurel LoPaD (16 Apr, 2024) (redraws). All commentary, responses, and rebuttals should have been entered into OSCAR by Tuesday, April 30, 2024.
The June Laurel decisions will be made at the Pelican meeting held on Sunday, June 9, 2024 and the Wreath meeting held on Saturday, June 8, 2024. These meetings will consider the following letters of intent: Æthelmearc (04 Mar, 2024), Calontir (04 Mar, 2024), An Tir (10 Mar, 2024), Laurel LoPaD (17 Mar, 2024), Palimpsest Rules Letter (17 Mar, 2024), Artemisia (20 Mar, 2024), An Tir (24 Mar, 2024), Palimpsest Rules Letter (24 Mar, 2024), East (25 Mar, 2024), Ansteorra (27 Mar, 2024), Ealdormere (27 Mar, 2024), Middle (28 Mar, 2024), Palimpsest Rules Letter (28 Mar, 2024), Trimaris (28 Mar, 2024), Æthelmearc (29 Mar, 2024), Outlands (29 Mar, 2024), West (29 Mar, 2024), Atenveldt (30 Mar, 2024), Lochac (30 Mar, 2024), Drachenwald (31 Mar, 2024), Northshield (31 Mar, 2024), Laurel LoPaD (11 May, 2024) (redraws). All commentary, responses, and rebuttals should have been entered into OSCAR by Friday, May 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 2024-06-06T21:11:20