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Minutes of the July, 2020 Heralds Meeting

Minutes Page Main Herald's Web Page

Latest LoAR Info Submissions to Laurel from this Meeting Returns from this Meeting

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MINUTES OF THE HERALDS MEETING – July 26, 2020
(11:06 am to 1:08 pm)

ATTENDEES:

Alizan De la Fontaine, Vesper; Edith of Swanesdale, Matins; Hirsch von Henford, Golem; Astrið of Swansvale, PaL; Domamir Vlatko syn, Seawolf; Aasa Thorvaldsdottir, Green Banner; Eilis O'Boirne, Green Crown; Douglas of Champclair; Jocelyn d’Orleans; Kean de Lacy, Brachet; Moira O’Connor, Sableswan; Gwenhwyfaer ferch Gwilym ap Morgan o Erryrys, Baldric; Frederick of Holland, PaL; William O’Neil; Ommadan inigena Ru, Cornet; Luxia Sabina.

COLLEGE OF HERALDS MEETINGS
The July 2020 meeting was held in via remote teleconference. Heralds' Meetings for 2020: September 20, and November 15. Meetings for 2021: January 10th, March 14, May 16, July 18, September 19, November 7. Meetings usually begin at 11:00 AM and will be held via online/remote teleconference until further notice (see also: When/Where Are the Next Meetings?).

The DEADLINES for submission forms and documentation are: September 9, and November 4. July 15, September 9, and November 4. 2021 Deadlines: December 16, 2020, March 3, 2021, May 5, July 7, September 8, October 27. Submission forms must be complete and received either via EMAIL or hardcopy by the deadline date at midnight to be considered at the next meeting (which is about 11 days later, except December due to holidays and the roadshow meeting prep time needed). If the forms are EMAILED, then payment must arrive by the meeting day. WALK-IN submissions will not be accepted while meetings are held via remote conference.

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REPORTS

Vesper (Alizan): The West Kingdom College of Heralds continues to function and to provide virtual court, consultation, and registration services for the populace of the West Kingdom. Business and commenting meetings continue in an online-only format: information on meetings can be found here: http://heralds.westkingdom.org/Meetings.php.

Kudos to Hirsch for his continued support for all things online for the WK CoHs and to Domamir for handling all virtual courts for Their Majesties. Good job!

We welcome anyone who is interested in learning about heraldry: our Handbook can be found here: http://heralds.westkingdom.org/Handbook/index.php.

We continue seeking candidates to take on the Green Trumpet town cry deputy position. Any interested parties should contact Vesper with their resumes (herald@westkingdom.org).

Recommendation to voice heralds: keep your voices active and in-use. One way to do this, that does not require being very loud, is to get a straw and hum through it as loud as you can.

Seawolf (Damir): No activity since last meeting, nothing to report. He is seeking candidates for a successor.

Sable Swan (Moira): Nothing has changed in the Principality of Cyngua.

Stellanordica (Bianca): No report received.

Exchequer (Damir): He is working on the Q2 report and expects to have it submitted this next week. Bank account transition has been slowed by COVID and life, but still planned. He is seeking a candidate for a successor.

Matins (Edith): Deputy (Hannah): Submissions continue to flow in to our College and get sent on to the SCA College of Arms. The submissions process has not been much affected by the current situation.

Edith will run the meeting in September, with Hannah’s agreement. The event she was going to be supporting has been cancelled.

Green Crown (Eilis): Since the last meeting, the only official West Kingdom Court was at virtual June Crown. It was again heralded by Damir and done very well. The court report has been filed and approved by Her Majesty.

Eilis has completed an extensive revision of the current article in the Herald's Handbook covering seating at court and feasts. It now includes a discussion of the precedence involved in these decisions, court seating, feast seating, toasting, and other matters of protocol which occasionally arise. It is with Na'arah for a first reading. It should be ready to include in the Handbook by the next meeting.

Baldric (Gwenhwyfaer): Kingdom Collegium happened. The Heralds held classes. Eilis decided to write an article, rather than attempt to teach a virtual class. Aasa & Flieg, and Edith taught classes. There were glitches in getting people into the classrooms, but all had some level of attendance. All noted they thought the courses worth the time and were willing to teach them again.

Collegium in October is still on the Kingdom Calendar. Gwen will reach out to set up a Heraldic track.

Brachet (Kean), Leveret (Ræv): He and Aasa have done a few heraldry-themed streams in conjunction with events. Other than that, he has done nothing heraldry-related recently.

Green Cloak (Ari Ella): No report received.

Green Trumpet (vacant): Deputy Support: Juliana of Sunset Shire. New Senior Staff position.

This position will oversee Town Cry (formerly called Duty Shout) and Heralds Point (information). If interested in this position, please contact Vesper.

The duties of this position include: for Kingdom events: staff and manage information point out of Heralds Point, staff and manage town cries. Store, transport, and arrange set-up & pack-down of Heralds Point to all Kingdom events, specifically: Crown Tourneys (Spring, June, Fall), Beltane, and Purgatorio Coronations in coordination with Green Cloak. Additionally, for West v. An-Tir War every other year when the Host of the war is The West.

Green Banner (Aasa): She has been involved with a handful of consultations, as needed. She did have cause to pull out the actual books to assist in a consultation, but that's about as much excitement as there's been. There may have also been some episodes of heraldic shenanigans at virtual events, by request. Not much of anything else to report. It's been pretty quiet.

Golem (Hirsch): The Golem Herald, like most of us, has had very little to do during the shelter-in-place. There has been one virtual court that he is aware of (June Crown) and the court report was taken care of. Otherwise, just hanging in there like everyone else.

From KWHSS 2020: the event happened in a virtual format. Very good Symposium. Feedback from classes and conversations is all positive. Juliana announced that Baroness Emma de Fetherstan has been selected by the Board of Directors as the next Laurel Queen of Arms. Further, Viscountess Elizabeth Turner de Carlisle will be the next Pelican Queen of Arms. At KWHSS, Cormac turned over Wreath to Oddr lærifaðir Þiálfason, who is now Wreath, King of Arms.

Regarding KWHSS 2021: It is not looking like travel restrictions will have been lifted in time for this event. The Sovereigns of Arms are still accepting bids, but only with the understanding the event may end up being virtual. The bid must include some information on how the virtual event would run and be supported. The deadline to submit a bid has been extended due to current circumstances.

Be aware: hosting Known World Heraldic and Scribal Symposium comes with a whole host of attached semi-social event expectations. It is not just a day of classes and then nothing. Excursions to view local sites, to stores. There are usually 3-4 activities planned on Friday with transportation arranged by the locals. In Las Vegas, a large group walked along the casino strip.

Friday night is usually a big, huge meet & greet party.

Saturday night is usually a feast/meal, followed by dancing. In New Orleans, everyone went down to the French Quarter. Damir is reaching out to the local musicians to see if they would be willing to attend Saturday night and play.

Volunteers: Jocelyn, Eilis, Alizan (Friday night host), Moira, Gwenhwyfaer, Caolinn, Ommadan (registration and toll taking), Edith.

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ANNOUNCEMENTS / Other Business

GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS

Facebook Page: The West Kingdom Heralds' have their own page on Facebook, announcements, help with consultation, and more are often done there:

      https://www.facebook.com/groups/302970543102065/

MAILING LIST: The West Kingdom College of Heralds has a mailing list for internal communication. NOTE that we are only using this for announcements and we may eventually phase it out. Any herald is welcome to join by request. To join the list, please subscribe at wkheralds-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.

There are also individual mailing lists on Yahoo for the Principalities, but the traffic has gone to announcements only, and again these may be phased out in preference to the Facebook page noted above. Details can be found at the bottom of this page: I Need to Contact a Kingdom or Principality Herald

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES: Many interesting heraldic links can be found through the SCA Heraldry web page at http://www.sca.org/heraldry, including the Laurel home page, the on-line Armorial and Ordinary (with search capabilities) and The Academy of St. Gabriel (an onomastic and heraldic consultation service). The West Kingdom Heraldry site and the West Kingdom Awards List can be accessed through the West Kingdom site, http://www.westkingdom.org. Heraldic queries may also be addressed to Vesper at herald@westkingdom.org -- answers may take a few days.

BRACHET MEETINGS

Contact brachet@heralds.westkingdom.org for external commenting participation. A central Cynagua external commenting meeting may begin soon, so watch this space!

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EXCERPTS FROM THE LOARS

The cover letters, acceptances and returns for the past can be found at http://heraldry.sca.org/loar/. If you are interested in responding to some of the calls for commentary put out by the Laurel Sovereign of Arms, please be sure to visit the site.

March, 2020 LoAR (printed May 19, 2020) (West - No LoI)

Cover Letter

From Laurel and Wreath: New Wreath

We are pleased to announce that we received a single excellent application for Wreath, from Oddr Þiálfason. We are pleased to appoint him as the new Wreath. He will step up in July; the transition has already begun.

For those who don't know Oddr personally, he lives in An Tir and has served as both Lions Blood (submissions) and Black Lion (principal herald). He's been active as a commenter and on Wreath's staff for years. We welcome him and look forward to working with him!

From Wreath: Roses and Columbines

Recently, the question came up about how much heraldic difference we grant for type of flower. It arose with the submission of Adriana de Fleurs, Azure, three columbines slipped and leaved argent, pended on the LoAR of October 2019. The issue was potential conflict with the registered arms of Jonas Aquilian, Azure, three roses argent. Our current policy allows a DC to be granted for type of flower, but not the Substantial Change sufficient to clear conflict on its own.

When looking to period heraldry for guidance in a case like this, there are two patterns we like to consider: are there examples of one coat of arms containing two different types of flowers? That would suggest that those flowers were distinguished in period heraldry. And are there examples of the same arms recorded in different rolls as having different types of flowers? That would suggest that those flowers were not distinguished.

We've the added issue that we don't know the period blazons of many arms with flowers, and therefore don't know which flowers were intended. (Modern heraldic authors have the same issue: a lot of flowers are simply blazoned flowers by modern authors.) Nonetheless, we've identified a few cases that help us.

Three examples, from British sources, of arms with two different types of flowers would be the arms of Cooke, c.1520: Sable, on a chevron Or between three roundels argent three cinquefoils sable, on a chief argent three columbines azure slipped and leaved vert; the arms of West, d.1533, Argent, on a chevron sable between roses gules slipped vert a lily Or; and the attributed arms of S. Ethelburga or Eadburga, from Peter Le Neve's Book c.1480, Azure, three columbines pendant argent slipped vert crowned Or, in base three roses 2&1 gules seeded Or, all within a bordure gules platy. These suggest that period heralds made a distinction between roses (cinquefoils), affronty and with few petals, and columbines, trumpet-shaped and in profile.

On the other hand, we have multiple examples of the same coat of arms, in different rolls, with different flowers. We have too many examples of arms variously recorded with roses, cinquefoils, or sexfoils to not consider them as pretty much interchangeable in period British heraldry. Other examples are less commonly found, but pertinent: the arms of West, d.1533, shown with either roses or gillyflowers; the arms of Ruthall or Rowthall, 1523, ditto; the arms of Hornby, c.1520, shown with either gillyflowers or marigolds; and the aforementioned arms of S. Ethelburga, with garden lilies inverted instead of columbines. Most confusing were the arms of Forest, c.1525, with a chevron charged (depending on the source) with a rose between two gillyflowers, a gillyflower (pink) between two marigolds, a rose between two marigolds, or three gillyflowers.

The examples suggest that period heralds might not distinguish between trumpet-shaped flowers in profile; might not distinguish between flowers with few petals, affronty; and might not distinguish between multi-petaled flowers (and that the latter might or might not be shown in profile). Any flower not trumpet shaped might be interpreted as a rose simply because roses were so ubiquitous.

Flowers in other categories were too rarely found to allow us to draw concrete deductions. (Thistles, in particular, were much less frequent in period than in the Society.)

We've reached a point where a comprehensive ruling is needed, such as has been done for type of bird (Cover Letter, Nov 2003) and type of tree (Cover Letter, Dec 2018). We therefore rule as follows:

• There is no difference for type between few-petaled flowers affronty (roses, sexfoils, poppies affronty, cherry blossoms, etc.). This is already our current policy.
• There is no difference for type between trumpet-shaped flowers in profile (columbines, lilies, tulips, daffodils, etc.). There can be a DC for orientation (as between columbines and lilies when both are in their default).
• There is no difference for type between multi-petaled flowers affronty (gillyflowers, chrysanthemums, daisies, etc.). Society practice doesn't normally depict such flowers in profile.
• There is SC for type between few-petaled flowers affronty, multi-petaled flowers affronty, and trumpet-shaped flowers in profile.

Flowers that don't fall into the above categories (the all-encompassing "miscellaneous" category) will be treated as individual cases, by type. We are likely, for instance, to grant SC between thistles and the above categories. Lotus flowers in profile, though not an SC from the trumpet-shaped flowers, might still be granted a DC from them; however, lotus flowers affronty will be treated as multi-petaled flowers affronty.

As for foils, our current policies remain in force. We'll still grant difference between, e.g., a trefoil and a cinquefoil: we've not found instances where those charges were conflated. And we'll still grant no difference between a cinquefoil and a rose: we've plenty of instances for those. If further evidence is brought, we can consider it then.

For now, the germane point is that we now grant an SC between roses and columbines, allowing the registration of Adriana's submission.

From Wreath: Heraldic Whales and Natural Dolphins

The Letter of Pends and Discussion included a submission that raised the question between a heraldic whale and a natural dolphin, which existing precedent does not address. A heraldic whale is a monstrous beast-headed fish-like creature not unlike a heraldic dolphin. As used in the SCA, heraldic whales have distinctive though inconsistent features such as tusks and a spout, based upon various cartographic depictions. The whale is a period heraldic charge, found in period heraldic treatises such as de Bara's Blason des Armoiries (1581), though they do not include spouts or tusks. Without the distinctive features, the whale visually similar to a heraldic dolphin and thus no difference is granted between them. Additionally, we have a long tradition of not granting difference between natural and heraldic versions of the same charge. This is true of both dolphins and whales. However, it has also often been ruled that conflict is not necessarily transitive. The tusks, spout, and body proportions, if they were used consistently with no period heraldic example, would have made the charge visually distinct from a natural dolphin. However, due to both the lack of consistency in depicting heraldic whales in SCA heraldry and a period heraldic example which show none of these features, there is no compelling reason to provide a DC between a heraldic whale and a natural dolphin.

In summary:

• A heraldic whale conflicts with a natural whale
• A heraldic whale conflicts with a heraldic dolphin
• A heraldic dolphin conflicts with a natural dolphin
• A heraldic whale conflicts with a heraldic dolphin

From Wreath: Tricunes

A "tricune" is an SCA-invented charged first registered to Uilleam Thorken Hardhans in February 1972, at which time it was noted "A tricune (Lat.: "triple wedge") is a geometric figure formed of three passion-nails conjoined in estoile at the heads." We currently define it as three passion nails in pall inverted conjoined at their heads. Effective immediately we will no longer use the term tricune. The six existing registrations have been reblazoned in this LoAR. The combination of three passion nails in pall inverted conjoined at their heads remains registrable but this blazon makes the nature of the charge combination clear. Submitters should be aware of potential unity of orientation issues if they elect to use this combination of charges.

While currently categorized in the O&A as mullets of three points, this collection of charges is not a mullet and does not conflict with mullets.

From Wreath: Backing Color for Fieldless Badges with Argent Charges

Fieldless badges with primarily (or exclusively) argent complex charges are among the most difficult designs to identify, as the default field for a paper form matches the tincture of the charge. In OSCAR, helpful commenters will sometimes add a contrasting background color to aid in identification. We feel that this is a useful technique, one that can be used judiciously in the actual armory submission.

Effective immediately, fieldless badges with argent charges may, at the discretion of the submitter and consulting herald, include a field to provide some contrast. The color of the field should not be any of the standard heraldic tinctures, nor close enough to be confused for them. For such purposes, we recommend a medium gray, somewhere between the RBG values of #777777 and #AAAAAA (decimal values "119, 119, 119" and "170, 170, 170"). This can be effected through a light rubbing of a graphite pencil on a paper submission. Importantly, it needs to be far enough from either argent or sable that it will not be confused for an actual field for registration purposes.

The gray backing, like the broken line denoting the square space for the badge on the form, will not be considered part of the registration itself.

This policy will be revisited as necessary.

From Pelican: Use of Furs in Heraldic Titles and Order Names

Both heraldic titles and order names can be formed using the pattern Heraldic Tincture + Heraldic Charge. This month, we considered whether furs should be treated like other heraldic tinctures for these purposes, even though we have no evidence of such constructions in period.

Commenters pointed out that we already allow the use of some heraldic tinctures in order names and heraldic titles for which we do not have evidence in period. For example, we do not have examples of purpure/purple in period order names, yet we allow it in order names and heraldic titles in the Society. It would make no sense to non-heralds to treat furs differently from colors and metals.

Accordingly, effective as of the date of this letter, single-word fur tinctures, such as erminois, vair, ermine and pean may be used in order names and heraldic titles just like any other heraldic tinctures. More complicated furs, such as Argent ermined vert, may not be used.

We thank Cormac Wreath and Emma Temperance for their advice and assistance on this question.

From Pelican: Use of Subsidiary Branch Names in Order Names

This month, a Barony submitted two order names that used the registered names of a College and Canton under its aegis as part of the order names. This is permissible as long as the Barony supplies evidence that the subsidiary branch is part of the Barony and that the subsidiary branch was consulted and gave permission to the use of its name. Effective as of the date of this letter, this evidence should come in the form of a letter signed by the Seneschal of the Barony and the Seneschal of the subsidiary group (Canton, etc.) stating that the group was consulted and consented. Language in the following form will suffice:

We, [SCA name], Seneschal of the Barony of X, and [SCA name], Seneschal of [Subsidiary Group], hereby attest and confirm that [Subsidiary Group] was consulted and gave the Barony of X permission to use its branch name as part of the order name [Submitted Order Name], submitted by the Barony of X. We understand that this permission cannot be withdrawn once the order name is registered.

This letter should be signed with legal names and dated. We ask Palimpsest to updated Appendix D of the Administrative Handbook to include this form letter.

West Acceptances - March LoAR

Bernal Diez de Leon. Name.

Submitted as Bernal Diez _, this name was pended on the October 2019 Letter of Acceptances and Returns for discussion of whether it presumes on the historical figure Bernal Díaz del Castillo (1496-1584). Because he is known in many sources as simply Bernal Diaz, without the locative, PN4D requires us to undertake the presumption analysis.

PN4D1 of SENA states, in relevant part:

Individuals whose names are recognized by a significant number of people in the Society without having to look them up in a reference are generally important enough to protect. Individuals recognized only by specialists in a subject are unlikely to be important enough to protect. Individuals who are only recognized with the assistance of reference books are unlikely to be important enough to protect.

Individuals whose work and/or life are still influential today are generally important enough to protect. Those whose work significantly shaped the course of world history, science, or the arts are generally important enough to protect. This is generally measured by examining measures like the length of encyclopedia articles about the person and his/her work, numbers of search engine hits for the individual, and the like.

Bernal Diaz was a conquistador and, more importantly, the author of The True History of the Conquest of New Spain, which details Hernán Cortés' expedition against the Aztecs. Diaz's work is one of the most important sources of information about the Spanish invasion of Mexico. His name is the first hit on Google searches for "Bernal Diaz" or "Bernal Diez," and those searches yield several pages of results. He has his own entry in the Encyclopedia Britannica (https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bernal-Diaz-del-Castillo), a fairly substantial entry on Wikipedia, and an entry in the Oxford Encyclopedia of Mesoamerica. The True History is available both in original form and in translation/transcriptions and continues to be relied upon by students of Spanish and Mesoamerican history. Bernal Diaz therefore meets our standards for protection under PN4D1.

When advised of the presumption issue, the submitter agreed to add a locative byname unrelated to the historical Bernal Diaz. The byname de Leon is found in "Spanish Names from the Late 15th Century" by Juliana de Luna (http://heraldry.sca.org/names/isabella/locative.html). As Bernal Diaz de Leon, the name is free of conflict and presumption issues.

As modified, nice Spanish name from the late 15th century onwards!

Richard of Rideja. Reblazon of device. Chevronelly argent and gules, a spearhead sable.

Blazoned when registered in October 1976 as Chevronelly sans nombre argent and gules, a spearhead sable, we are clarifying that the field is just chevronelly.

Uilleam Thorken Hardhans. Reblazon of device. Azure, three two-tined eating forks, on a chief argent three sets of three passion nails in pall inverted conjoined at their heads sable.

Blazoned when registered in January 1972 as Azure, three forks two-tined and tangued Or, on a chief argent three tricunes sable, we are clarifying the combination of charges on the chief. See the Cover Letter for a fuller discussion.

West Returns - March LoAR

none

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April, 2020 LoAR (printed June 14, 2020) (West - January, 2020 LoI)

Cover Letter

From Laurel: Free Changes for Offensive Names and Devices

In recognition of the developments over the past few years, some people with registered names and armory that are, or have become, unintentionally offensive may wish to change their registrations. For example, the phrase the Gypsy has been identified as hate speech by the Roma people and the United Nations. A submitter might wish to change that byname to one that indicates Roma ancestry but does not have the same connotations. Others feature heraldic charges that have been coopted by hate groups.

Starting immediately, the College of Arms will allow submitters to request name and armory changes to address offensiveness concerns free of charge (including both Laurel and kingdom charges).

From Pelican: Proposed Changes to PN3C2 and NPN3C2

This month we asked for input on a proposed change to PN3C2, which currently states: "If a vowel and the consonant or group of consonants on one side of this vowel is different between the two names, we consider a syllable to be substantially changed." Further PN3C2 gives the following example:

Margerie Clutter is not substantially different in sound from Margery Catter, because the given names sound identical and, although the first syllables of the bynames are different, the cl and c groups of consonants share a sound and the other consonant group is identical.

The proposed change would allow a single syllable to be clear of conflict if both the vowel and any part of the consonant cluster on either side of the vowel is different. If this change were adopted, Margery Catter would be clear of Margerie Clutter.

Unfortunately, we received little to no commentary on this proposed change. Therefore, in the hope of provoking commentary, we ask Palimpsest to issue a letter making a specific proposal for this change for both PN3C2 and NPN3C2.

From Wreath: Transition and Division of Labor

This month marks the first of three transitional decision meetings for the position of Wreath Sovereign of Arms. For the month of April, Cormac wrote the decisions for Æthelmearc, An Tir, Ansteorra, Artemisia, Atenveldt, Atlantia, Avacal, Caid, Calontir, Drachenwald, Ealdormere, East, Gleann Abhann, Lochac, and Meridies, while Oddr wrote the decisions for Middle, Northshield, Outlands, Trimaris, and West.

From Wreath: On Distinct Changes Within Bird Categories

This month, a submission raised a question about about whether a DC existed between a falcon and an owl. Prior decisions have been contradictory, and we take this time to reaffirm existing precedent that there does exist a DC between owls close and falcons close.

SENA Appendix M, referencing the November 2003 LoAR Cover Letter, discusses conflict between bird types. While Appendix M indicates falcons belong to the "regular-shaped" category, it makes no specific mention of owls. That information is found in the November 2003 Cover Letter, defining regular-shaped birds as "including martlets, ravens and other corbies, raptors (hawks, eagles, and owls), and doves [...]".

Further, Appendix M only directly addresses SCs, leaving DCs to prior rulings based on the November 2003 Cover Letter. While the Cover Letter provides a more complete discussion and additional references, the general process for determining a DC between birds of the same category is outlined in the acceptance of Sable, two ravens addorsed argent [Hróðgeirr Hrafnsson, 05/2010, Atlantia-A], discussing ravens close vs owls close:

For [a DC], we must ask if both are period charges, which is the case. In that situation, we assume that there is [a DC] unless the two charge types are shown to be interchangeable in period armory. Owls and ravens do not appear to have been used interchangeably in period, so there is [a DC] between them.

Questions of conflict with other birds have thus been addressed over the past decade, including:

• owl rising vs falcon, eagle, or snowy egret rising: Gules, an owl rising wings displayed argent [Sofya la Rus, 06/2014, Calontir-A]
• owl close vs dodo close: (Fieldless) An owl vert [Lelia Corsini, 04/2018, Calontir-A]

For more information on this venerable topic, see SENA Appendix M (SC between bird categories), the November 2003 Cover Letter that it references (DCs within a bird category, and categorizing owls), the associated "Some birds and the postures in which they are found in period English heraldry" by Zenobia Naphtali, and the January 2000 acceptance of Wojciech Bobrowski, Azure crusilly formy argent, a falcon rising wings addorsed maintaining a horseshoe inverted Or, as well as the Cover Letter of the same month, which underpins the whole.

West Acceptances - April LoAR

Bella Dona dei Sorci. Name and device. Per fess gules fretty argent and azure, in base an eagle argent, a bordure Or semy-de-lis azure.

Submitted as Bella Dona di Sorci, the documentation did not support the construction of the byname di Sorci. The references provided in the Letter of Intent to Castello di Sorci are modern. Further, "Sorci" is not a place name; "Castello di Sorci" means "castle of mice."

There is a pattern of animal-based bynames in period Italian. For example, the Online Tratte of Office Holders 1282-1532 (http://cds.library.brown.edu/projects/tratte/doc/SURNAM1.html), shows the bynames Cane (dog), Pecora (sheep) and del Bove (bull). In addition, Lillia Crampette found evidence of an early 16th century author named Giacomo de' Sorci. In Italian, de' is a scribal abbreviation for dei. Although the submitter initially disallowed any changes, she expressly permitted the change to Bella Dona dei Sorci to match the documentation.

Even though Dona is a protected title in the Society as well as a given name, this name is not presumptuous. PN4B1 states:

Given names that are identical to titles and forms of address may be registered in contexts that make it clear that they are given names and not titles. For example, a given name like Regina may be registered in a name like Regina the Laundress or Regina Smith. Names like Regina of England or Regina Juliana of York will not be registered. They create the appearance of a claim to the restricted title Queen. Similarly, Miles is the approved Latin alternate for knight; however, Miles is also used as an English given name in period. Thus, Miles Martin would not create the appearance of a claim to the restricted title Miles.

In the present case, the byname dei Sorci does not indicate landedness. It is a family name possibly originally derived from an animal name. The combination of Dona and a family name is permissible, just like Regina Smith or Miles Martin.

Caterina La Chate. Device. Argent goutty de poix, a pomegranate gules seeded Or.

The gouttes in this submission match the teardrop variant found in the period example cited in the March 2013 Cover Letter. The example, Per fess argent and gules all goutty counterchanged, a heart gules, in the 1548 Wappenbuch der Arlberg-Bruderschaft by Virgil Raber, may be viewed at http://bilderserver.at/wappenbuecher/VirgilRaberEXAv2_52z2, on page 861.

Nice device!

Hirsch von Henford. Acceptance of transfer of Heraldic title Golden Stag Herald from East, Kingdom of the.

This matter was pended on the January 2020 LoAR until the associated transfer from the East kingdom appeared on a Letter of Acceptances and Returns. All of the other requirements set forth in the March 2015 Cover Letter for transfer of a heraldic title from an SCA Kingdom to an individual have been satisfied. With both the transfer and the acceptance now officially reviewed and decided, the title is now transferred to Hirsch von Henford.

Ragnarr Walrichsson. Device. Argent, a wolf's head cabossed per chevron sable and gules, in base five gouttes in chevron inverted, a bordure gules.

This was pended for redraw on the December 2019 LoAR.

Wolffhart Gualinghi. Name.

This name combines a German given name with an Italian byname, an acceptable lingual mix under Appendix C.

West Returns - April LoAR

none.

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May, 2020 LoAR (printed July 24, 2020) (West - No LoI)

Cover Letter

From Laurel: We Have Heirs

I'm pleased to announce that Baroness Emma de Fetherstan has been selected by the Board of Directors as the next Laurel Queen of Arms. Emma lives in Ansteorra, where she served as submissions and principal herald. She has been involved in heraldry at the Society level for a long time; she and I served as Pelican and Wreath together several years ago and she's worked for the team as post-meeting clerk pretty much since. You may remember that she briefly served as my predecessor as well. The Known World is in good hands. Details about the transition will follow.

I'm also pleased to announce that Viscountess Elizabeth Turner de Carlisle will be the next Pelican Queen of Arms. Elizabeth has been submissions herald for An Tir multiple times, and served as Princess of the Summits. She brings a lot of energy and knowledge to the job. She'll be taking over from Alys on October 1. For those of you keeping track at home, yes, that means for a just a little while, we'll have an all An Tir team.

From Laurel: KWHSS 2020 - Thanks to All

This year's Known World was quite an adventure. We were scheduled to go to Lochac, then coronavirus got in the way and the event team turned it into an amazing virtual event instead. We had so many people who wanted to come that we had to turn them away. Five hundred people preregistered, over twice the number we've had at least in recent time, maybe ever, at a KWHSS. I had more students in one class than I've ever had before. We look forward to the Proceedings, which should be forthcoming shortly.

My thanks to Baroness Miriam bat Shimeon, the event steward, and her team. I want to acknowledge especially Mistress ffride wlffsdottir, who coordinated classes and edited the proceedings, and Lady Amelia de la Mere, who managed the bookings/preregistration. I also want to thank Baron Sorle Maknicoll, who was Crux Australis when this journey started, and Lady Amanda Martel, who was Crux by the time we got to the event. You all did an amazing job picturing an event you'd never been to, modifying it on the fly as expectations and possibilities changed, and in the end, produced an event so much better that I could have dreamed of. You inspire me! (And we're going to get to Lochac once the plague is gone from the land.)

It's bittersweet that my last Known World as Laurel happened virtually. I got to see and talk to so many people, but I didn't get to hug any of you. See you soon!

From Laurel: KWHSS 2021 - Get the Bids In

As you all know, life has been a little disrupted recently. As such, we 're not ready to announce a location for KWHSS 2021. Back in April, we extended the deadline for bids to September 1. We'd recommend that any bid include some thinking about a virtual event as well as a face to face one; we hope for the latter, but travel still may be an issue next summer. We look forward to seeing bids and announcing a decision in the fall.

From Laurel: Brían dorcha ua Conaill

One of the great pleasures of being Laurel is getting to reward good work. The College of Arms has a rank of Herald Extraordinary that has a long and honored history. The rank was formally created and defined in the July 1981 Cover Letter by Wilhelm Laurel. The intent of the rank is to recognize and reward "... those heralds who have greatly served the College of Heralds and/or the College of Arms and have achieved the highest level of competence in heraldry."

What's rarer is to get to grant such a title live. At the Laurel Roadshow on July 12, with the blessing of their Majesties of Lochac, we created Brían dorcha ua Conaill a Herald Extraordinary. For those who weren't there: Pelican called upon him to offer commentary on a Gaelic name; he obliged with his usual great depth of knowledge and good judgement; Pelican pointed out that this needed acknowledgement; and we granted him the recognition at once. We exhort him to register a personal title of his choosing.

From Palimpsest: Successor Sought

Palimpsest Herald is Laurel's Rules Deputy; that is, Palimpsest is the herald who helps manage the process of changing the rules and handbooks for heralds at the Society level. It's a position that requires attention to detail, fluency with words, strong familiarity with the current rules and handbooks, ready access to email and OSCAR, and general word processing skills. Also useful are the ability to edit HTML and familiarity with older versions of the rules and handbooks and the history of the CoA.

Palimpsest is responsible for: maintaining and managing changes to the Administrative Handbook and the Standards for Evaluation of Names and Armory and their Appendices, the Glossary of Terms, Alternate Titles List, and other documents as directed; advising Laurel and Laurel deputies on other Handbook-type documents and questions relating to the rules, handbooks, etc.; answering inquiries regarding processes, rules, etc. from other heralds and the general populace.

Please contact Ursula (rules@heraldry.sca.org) and Laurel (laurel@heraldry.sca.org) if you have questions about this position and/or are interested in taking on this office by September 1, 2020.

From Ragged Staff: Call for Applicants

The time has come to seek a replacement deputy for Ragged Staff Herald. I must say that this has been the most challenging but rewarding experience of my SCA career. Please review the Ragged Staff job description and requirements. Do you have an administrative bent? Know how to make the trains run on time and enjoy doing it? Then this is the perfect job to learn more about the inner workings of the College of Arms. This is an unpaid position requiring around 25 hours of work a month. Letters of intent should be sent to laurel@heraldry.sca.org and copied to ragged-staff@heraldry.sca.org before September 1, 2020. If you have any questions at all about the position, please do not hesitate to ask. I will be happy to answer. Think you're not qualified? I bet you are!

Thank you for your time and consideration. It has been the greatest pleasure working with the College of Arms.

In Service,
Magnifica Seraphina, Ragged Staff

Job Description: Ragged Staff Herald (Ragged Staff) is the file clerk for the Laurel office. Ragged Staff ensures that all submission paperwork from each kingdom's submissions herald is present in OSCAR, follows up with kingdom submissions heralds for omissions or discrepancies, checks forms for consistency with LoIs, assists with uploading additional material, summarizes forms for Pelican and Wreath meetings (at the behest of Pelican or Wreath as needed) and attend Wreath/Pelican meetings as needed or have a deputy attend.

Job Requirements: Computer with reliable internet access, reliable phone.

The successful candidate will possess the following qualities:

• Organized, with the ability to recall detail.
• Understanding of the publishing timetable for LoARs.
• Understanding of the administrative rules for the CoA.
• Be able to devote about 25 hours a month to the position.

From Pelican: The Problem of Place Names and Offensiveness

Questions were raised this month about whether the names of any places associated with Nazi prison, labor and concentration camps or other Nazi atrocities should be considered offensive name elements and banned from registration. Under SENA, "[o]ffense is not dependent on intent; the fact that a submitter did not intend to be offensive is not relevant. The standard is whether a large segment of the SCA or the general public would be offended." PN5A.

Based on commentary from heralds and non-heralds, as well as recent events, it is clear that a large segment of the SCA and the general public are offended by explicit references to Nazis. However, a blanket ban on every place name association with the Nazis would ban over 1,000 place names, not only in Germany but also in other parts of occupied Europe. Such a plan places an undue burden on people wishing to recreate German and Eastern European history. Therefore, after consulting with our cousins in Drachenwald (many of whom live in places that some have asked to be banned), Laurel will be putting forth a letter asking for commentary on certain specific camp names and whether the level of infamy for those names is sufficiently high that the name should be banned outright. We ask heralds to read and advise on the list of proposed names, either in OSCAR or in direct e-mails to Pelican and Laurel.

From Pelican: Offensiveness by Association

Over the last year there has been a call to adjust SENA to incorporate the concept of offensiveness by association, rather than just offensiveness based on the meaning of a name element. In other words, name elements that are associated with morally offensive events, offensive people or other offensive concepts would be prohibited just as names with offensive meanings are currently prohibited.

On June 12, 2020 Palimpsest put forth a letter proposing specific amendments to PN5B and NPN5B, adding a new category of offensive names, Offensiveness by Association. We ask heralds to read and advise on the proposed language, either in OSCAR in direct e-mails to Palimpsest, Pelican and Laurel.

From Wreath: On Imaginary Orles and Bordures

In the submission of the badge of Nathaniel Lennox, Checky vert and argent, a delf within a bordure gules, appearing in the Calontir registrations, kingdom noted that commenters raised the question of interpreting the submission as Gules, an orle checky vert and argent, and thus in conflict with Carson Wynne, Gyronny wavy sable and argent, an orle counter-compony vert and argent [Jan 2014, Gleann Abhann], with only 1 DC for the field. However, they correctly cited precedent that we do not penalize for the shape of our forms: "[Regarding Or, a bordure purpure semy-de-lys bases to center Or] Some commenters suggested that this submission has an equally valid blazon of Purpure, a delf within an orle of fleurs-de-lys bases to center Or, but this is not the case: we do not penalize submitters for the shape of our forms. Drawn on a different-shaped form, the field would not appear to be a delf." [Marceau de Valcourt, A-07/2009 via Atenveldt]

Having seen this issue raised on a regular basis over the past few years, we wish to remind commenters: a fixed, shield-shape charge such as a delf, roundel, or escutcheon, on a field of the same shape does not permit us to reinterpret the design as using a bordure or (as in this case) an orle instead.

We thank our colleagues in Calontir for reminding commenters of this fact.

From Wreath: Claims of Marshalling - Order of Operations

This month, we were asked to consider armory that had previously been returned for the appearance of marshalling. Though the new design cleared the rule, commenters still asked whether the armory had the appearance of marshalling due to one of the rules under SENA A6F.

Like much of SENA, Section A6F is designed as a decision tree. If X is true, go to Y; else, go to Z. The section has three subsections: designs which aren't marshalling, designs which are, and designs which may or may not be. If the armory is described in the first section, it automatically clears presumption regardless of the rest of the section.

As an example: SENA A6F2c states that "When different sections of the field contain different types of charges, it creates the appearance of marshalling." Without SENA A6F1, this would prohibit the registration of Per bend sable and gules, a goat's head couped contourny and a raven argent or Per pale urdy Or and azure, a fox sejant guardant gules and a bee Or, both of which were registered on the April 2020 LoAR and which are cleared of presumption by SENA A6F1a and A6F1b, respectively.

From Wreath: Old Business - Triskeles

On the December 2015 Cover Letter, there was a call for commentary to consider a step from period practice for the use of the triskele, or triskelion arrondi.

Since that time, our practice has been to state the use of the charge as a step from period practice. However, we neglected to make a formal declaration. We do so now:

The use of a triskele, or triskelion arrondi, is a step from period practice.

From Wreath: Natural Rainbows Are Period

This month we were asked to consider whether the natural rainbow, being a heraldic charge with a complexity count of at least seven (usually eight, if the clouds are argent or sable), in combination with another charge, automatically breaks the complexity count restriction found in SENA A3E2. In the August 2008 registration of the device of Phillida Parker, Per fess wavy argent and Or, a natural rainbow proper clouded azure and three fir trees couped vert, it was ruled:

This submission includes indigo as one of the rainbow's tinctures. This matches the description of a natural rainbow proper provided by Laurel when one of Phillida's previous submissions was returned, in December 2002, and the description listed in the Pictorial Dictionary of Heraldry. This contradicts the definition in the Glossary of Terms, which omits indigo following precedent from the tenure of Wilhelm von Schlüssel as Laurel. Given the inability of most people to see indigo, the use or omission of indigo in natural rainbows will be considered a matter of artistic license.

While the device has a complexity count of ten (argent, gules, orange, Or, azure, indigo, vert, purpure, rainbow, tree), which is greater than our guideline of eight, natural rainbows proper by themselves already have a complexity count of eight or nine, depending on the inclusion of indigo (either six or seven colors for the arch, argent clouds, and the rainbow as a type). If some additional complexity was not acceptable, natural rainbows by themselves on a field would be entirely unregisterable. Since natural rainbows always have this large complexity count, a complexity count of two greater than that of the rainbow by itself will be considered acceptable. Higher complexity counts may be registerable on a case by case basis.

The rainbow is a period charge, and the tincture of a heraldic rainbow proper varies depending on whether the rainbow appears on a color or metal background. Therefore we have no reason to overturn the 2008 policy at this time.

Furthermore, the tincture pattern of a natural rainbow was known in period, being a naturally observed phenomenon that was depicted in period art. As we have no other examples of maintaining a step from period practice for use of a tincture of a period heraldic charge, and as the natural rainbow would have been known to period artists, we explicitly overturn prior precedent. A natural rainbow no longer carries a step from period practice.

From Wreath: Continuing the Transition and Division of Labor

As is customary, when we break in a new Sovereign of Arms, we do it gently by splitting the workload. This month, the decisions were split as follows:

For the month of May, Cormac wrote the decisions for the Kingdoms of Æthelmearc, An Tir, Ansteorra, Artemisia, Atenveldt, Atlantia, Avacal, Caid, and Calontir, while Oddr wrote the decisions for Drachenwald, Ealdormere, East, Meridies, Middle, Northshield, and Outlands.

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In Service,
Edith of Swanesdale, PaL,
Matins Herald

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SUBMISSONS – May (2020)

ITEMS SENT TO LAUREL

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RETURNS

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