Society for Creative Anachronism
College of Arms
For the April 2025 meetings, printed May 30, 2025
To all the College of Arms and all others who may read this missive, from Birgitta Laurel, Sara Pelican, and Iago Wreath, greetings.
Wreath is an unpaid position, currently requiring approximately 20 hours a week. Some knowledge of period heraldry is useful; knowledge of SCA heraldry is essential. The position requires considerable tact and patience, research and reasoning ability, a clear understanding of the Standards for Evaluation of Names and Armory and past Laurel rulings, the ability to write clearly and succinctly, the ability to work within tight deadlines and coordinate closely with Pelican, Laurel, and other staff to produce a Laurel Letter of Acceptances and Returns monthly, computer literacy and word processing skills, reliable e-mail and telephone access, and time and ability to travel. Given the current structure of the office, a high-speed internet connection is required.
Resumes must be sent electronically to Laurel at [email protected] by September 1, 2025, with an expected start date in spring 2026 to be determined with the Laurel staff.
A few submissions this month caused us to consider the per chevron inverted throughout division. This is a complicated division to depict, particularly on an escutcheon, as it is impossible to make it evenly divide the field. It also leaves very little room for charges in the lower sections, forcing them to be much smaller than their co-primary charges in the upper section. Perhaps even more important is that fact that we're not aware of any period examples of per chevron inverted throughout.
Because of this, we will no longer register armory using the per chevron inverted throughout division as of the October 2025 Wreath meeting. For clarity, this only applies to per chevron inverted throughout, not a standard per chevron inverted.
This month we saw a submission that combined a per chevron inverted field with a chief triangular.
Precedent says:
[Considering Argent, a wolf's head cabossed and a base indented sable, a chief indented gules] This device is returned for redraw, for using a chief and a base together. Precedent says "[w]e leave open the possibility that there might be designs with a chief and a base together, which would not blur the distinction from a charged fess: if the chief and base were different tinctures, for instance, or if they had different lines of division. But these will have to be considered case-by-case; we'd love to see some period examples of them." [Cynwrig de Montain, R-Artemisia, Nov 2006 LoAR] In this case, while the chief and the base are different tinctures, they have the same complex line. This still blurs the distinction between this blazon, with a primary wolf's head, and Per fess argent and sable, on a fess indented argent a wolf's head cabossed sable, with a charged fess. [Wolf de la Wode, 05/2013, R-Ansteorra]
and:
[Considering Per fess sable and argent, three chevronels braced counterchanged and on a chief embattled argent a pellet] This badge is returned for redraw. As depicted, there is confusion as to whether this is a per fess field with a chief that is higher than the upper section of the divided field or more likely a fess embattled that is too high on the field. On resubmission, please let the submitter know that the chief should be placed above two equally divided per fess sections. [Mons Tonitrus, Barony of, for Order of the Sable Chevronels of Mons Tonitrus, 10/2016, R-Atenveldt]
Similarly, the combination of a per chevron inverted field with a chief triangular blurs the distinction with per chevron inverted and a chevron inverted; even when the lines aren't exactly parallel, the impression of a chevron inverted remains. As noted in the January 2010 return of the device of Violante d'Atayde, with an identical combination of elements [emphasis added]: "The submitted design, no matter how it is drawn, appears to be a poorly drawn rendition of Per chevron inverted sable and gules, a chevron inverted Or."
In general, combining a field division with a parallel (or roughly parallel) peripheral ordinary - such as per pale and a tierce, or per fess and a chief or base - creates such ambiguity, and will not be registerable going forward without documentation of the practice.
We direct Palimpsest to prepare a rules letter proposing to add this information as SENA A3D1c.
We wish to thank Scolastica la souriete for pointing out that P.H. Reaney's The Origin of English Surnames is not included on the Administrative Handbook Appendix H, Sources That Do Not Require Photocopies to Laurel. As it has data not readily available from other sources, and it is available electronically as well as relatively inexpensively either new or used, we direct Palimpsest to add it to Appendix H.
On May 3, 2025, in the East Kingdom, Donovan Shinnock, Golden Rapier Herald, fighting for Countess Chatricam Meghanta won Crown Tournament, becoming Prince of the East.
At that same event, Their Majesties Ryouko'jin and Indrakshi of the East recognized Ané{zv}ka Liska z Kolína, Pantheon Herald and Blue Tyger Herald Emerita, as a member of Their Order of the Golden Rapier. The Golden Rapier is the East's grant-level fencing award.
Also on May 3, 2025, at Crown Tournament in the Kingdom of Atlantia, Their Majesties Abran and Anya inducted Geoffrey d'Ayr of Montalban, Coral Branch Herald, into their Order of the Golden Dolphin for his many years of service to the kingdom, including as Exchequer to the Atlantian College of Heralds.
Also on May 3, 2025, at Black Axe in the Barony of Iron Mountain, Their Majesties Meridies Lochlainn and Paraskova bestowed an Augmentation of Arms to Adelaide Colette de Monferrer, Diligence Herault.
On May 10, 2025, in the Kingdom of Northshield, Sir Tom Tinnabulum won Crown Tournament causing Wu Yun, Clarion Herald, to become Princess of Northshield. Vivat!
On May 17, 2025, at the Age of the Griffin event, Their Majesties Ariston and Jochen, Kings of Lochac, created Amanda Martel, former Crux Australis Principal Herald, a Companion of the Star and Lily for her heraldic work. The Star and Lily is Lochac's AoA-level arts and sciences award.
At the same event, the Crown of Lochac created Kiriel du Papillon a Companion of Vox Coronis, Lochac's AOA-level court heraldry award.
Still at the same event, the Crown of Lochac elevated Gwen verch David, stalwart of announcement, court, and tourney heraldry, to the Order of the Laurel for her costuming and bardic work.
In sadder news, on April 30th, Baroness Ammalynne Sternjekrakki Haraldsdottir, OP, Papyrus Pursuivant (Archives), former Pennon Herald (Submission), and long-time member of the Meridies College of Heralds passed away.
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 13, 2025 and the Wreath meeting held on Saturday, April 5, 2025. These meetings considered the following letters of intent: Atlantia (31 Dec, 2024) (pushed due to late finalization), Trimaris (31 Dec, 2024) (pushed due to late finalization), Calontir (07 Jan, 2025), An Tir (09 Jan, 2025), Laurel LoPaD (12 Jan, 2025), Meridies (15 Jan, 2025), Artemisia (21 Jan, 2025), West (23 Jan, 2025), Outlands (27 Jan, 2025), Ćthelmearc (30 Jan, 2025), Ansteorra (30 Jan, 2025), Atenveldt (30 Jan, 2025), Drachenwald (30 Jan, 2025), Lochac (30 Jan, 2025), Atlantia (31 Jan, 2025), Caid (31 Jan, 2025), East (31 Jan, 2025), Middle (31 Jan, 2025), An Tir (01 Feb, 2025), Laurel LoPfR (01 Mar, 2025). All commentary, responses, and rebuttals should have been entered into OSCAR by Monday, March 31, 2025.
The May Laurel decisions were made at the Pelican meeting held on Saturday, May 17, 2025 and the Wreath meeting held on Saturday, May 10, 2025. These meetings considered the following letters of intent: Ealdormere (31 Jan, 2025) (pushed due to late finalization), Calontir (02 Feb, 2025), Laurel LoPaD (04 Feb, 2025), Palimpsest Rules Letter (10 Feb, 2025), An Tir (11 Feb, 2025), Meridies (11 Feb, 2025), Avacal (22 Feb, 2025), Gleann Abhann (22 Feb, 2025), Northshield (22 Feb, 2025), Artemisia (24 Feb, 2025), Ealdormere (24 Feb, 2025), Outlands (25 Feb, 2025), East (26 Feb, 2025), Trimaris (27 Feb, 2025), Ansteorra (28 Feb, 2025), Atenveldt (28 Feb, 2025), Drachenwald (28 Feb, 2025), Lochac (28 Feb, 2025), Middle (28 Feb, 2025), Laurel LoPfR (07 Apr, 2025). All commentary, responses, and rebuttals should have been entered into OSCAR by Wednesday, April 30, 2025.
The June Laurel decisions will be made at the Pelican meeting held on Sunday, June 15, 2025 and the Wreath meeting held on Saturday, June 14, 2025. These meetings will consider the following letters of intent: Calontir (03 Mar, 2025), Atlantia (04 Mar, 2025), Caid (10 Mar, 2025), Meridies (10 Mar, 2025), An Tir (17 Mar, 2025), An Tir (23 Mar, 2025), West (25 Mar, 2025), Artemisia (26 Mar, 2025), Ealdormere (26 Mar, 2025), Lochac (27 Mar, 2025), Palimpsest Rules Letter (27 Mar, 2025), Palimpsest Rules Letter (29 Mar, 2025), Atenveldt (30 Mar, 2025), Caid (30 Mar, 2025), East (30 Mar, 2025), Northshield (30 Mar, 2025), Ansteorra (31 Mar, 2025), Atlantia (31 Mar, 2025), Drachenwald (31 Mar, 2025), Middle (31 Mar, 2025), Northshield (31 Mar, 2025), Laurel LoPfR (29 Apr, 2025). All commentary, responses, and rebuttals should be entered into OSCAR by Saturday, May 31, 2025.
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 2025-05-30T17:47:17