Greetings unto all who read these words from Lord Alan Fairfax, Rouge Scarpe Herald,
This is the Middle Kingdom Letter of Acceptances and Returns for Escutcheon's April 1998 Letter of Intent. Comments in braces {} were removed from the Letter of Intent sent to Laurel and the College of Arms. Names, devices, or badges in braces have been returned or pended; general comments or replies to commentary are also placed in braces.
I would like to thank for their commentary this month Doré van der Zee, who is commenting for the first time, and Lady Aelfreda aet Aethelwealda, Lord Mikhail of Lubelska, Master Dmitrii Volkovich, Leodfrith Orstone, Lord Eirik Banna, Lady Mhorag nighean Dhuibhghiolla, Lord Eldred AElfwald, Baroness Elspeth Hinds, Lady Ealdthryth of Humberstone, Lady Cecily de Stafford, Lord Thór Thórínson, and Lady Aryanhwy Prytydes verch Catmael Caermyrdin. I would also like to thank Lady Phebe Bonadeci, Lord Kevin Ambrjwski, Conchobar mac Ghabann, Lady Andra de Leiden, Lord Hieronymous von Trier, Geilis inghean Dhubhgaill, and an anonymous assistant for helping in the preparation of the letter.
1) Aine inghean Chillín--New Name and Device.
Vert, an angel's wing Or within a bordure argent semy of shamrocks vert.
Submitted as Aine inghean Cillin, the patronymic was changed to the genitive. Aine "-1">is found in O'Corrain & Maguire, 19. Cillín is found in ibid., 52.
The wing does indeed appear to be an angel's wing. The PicDic depicts an angel with wings that have a short feather at the end. It isn't clear whether this is a universal feature of angel's wings, but the blazon is not entirely arbitrary.
{The bordure really is semy of shamrocks. Heralds only count to seven; eight or more is a semy. Eight shamrocks around the edge of a shield would be an orle of shamrocks vert, but when charges are scattered on a bordure, they are a semy.}
{2) Bronwyn Angelina of Rivenwood Tower. New Name and Device.
Or vetu ploye azure, a Lacy knot purpure.
The -wyn ending in Welsh is used only in men's names, so the spelling Bronwyn is not possible. The name Bronwyn Morgan the Embroiderer is a male name, since Morgan is also a male name in Welsh. Note that we have never found a historical person named Bronwin in any spelling; the name can be registered but should be avoided.
We were unable to find any Welsh, or even English, examples of the Italian name Angelina. Therefore, we are returning this name.
The blazon of the arms has been changed to reflect the emblazon, which is not color-on-color.}
{3) Cera mac Ewen--New Name and Device.
Purpure, a chevron between two suns an an annulet surmounted by three crescents conjoined in pall inverted Or.
Cera is found in O'Corrain & Maguire, 50. Mac Ewen is in Black, 491. There are two problems with this name. First, mac Ewen is an English rendering of a Gaelic name, while Cera is an original Gaelic spelling. Thus, Cera mac Ewen is a combination of two languages that were not combined in period.
If that were the only problem, I would send the name forward in the hope that an external commenter could construct an English form of Cera. However, mac Ewen means literally "son of Ewen" and would only have been used by men. Thus, Cera mac Ewen, which combines a feminine first name with a masculine byname, is impossible.
The device must be returned, primarily because the annulet conjoined to three crescents conjoined in pall inverted Or is a biohazard symbol, a modern emblem that is prohibited in SCA armory under RfS VIII.4.b, "Excessive Modernity." It is technically slot-machine heraldry as well, since it includes suns, crescents, and an annulet in a single charge group.
It does not conflict with Alexios Macedon, Per pale azure and gules, a chevron between three suns Or because the bottom charge in an arrangement of two and one is treated as half the design. This has period precedent; in many drawings the bottom charge in an arrangement of three is drawn much larger than the top two (see Foster's A Dictionary of Heraldry for examples). The suns, chevron, and biohazard symbol are not slot-machine because the chevron is the primary charge; the suns and symbol are one group around it.}
4) Clarissima Falconieri--New Name
Clarissima is found in Mittleman, "Feminine Given names from Thirteenth Century Perugia." Falconieri is found in the "Online Castato of 1427."
5) Daria of Greyfells--New Name and Device
Argent, a fess embowed between three lightning bolts in pile and a cloud purpure.
Submitted as Damara of Stormhaven. The client proposed Damara as a variant of Tamara, and presented several examples of exchange between "T" and "D" in English names. However, Tamara is a Russian name, and so the exchange is not necessarily valid. She also suggested Damara as a Latinization of Damaris (Withycombe, 78), but -is is also a common ending for Latinized women's names. Since Damaris is already a proper Latin name, it is not likely that it would have been changed to Damara.
As an alternative, the client requested Daria, the name of an early martyr. Although I found no evidence for the use of Daria, Butler's Lives of the Saints (s. October 25) says that her alleged relics were translated to Münstereifel in the 9th century and that she was venerated in Rome and Naples around the same time. Thus the name is plausible at least by SCA standards.
She submitted Stormhaven as a constructed place-name with no documentation. Since I was unsure about the plausibility of the name, I followed her request and substituted Greyfells, the name of her SCA group. However, she would prefer Stormhaven if it is a registerable placename.
6) Duccio di Alighieri--New Name and Device.
Per pale vert and gules, a cubit arm Or maintaining a quill and brush in saltire argent within a bordure embattled Or.
Duccio is documented from the Britannica Multimedia Edition 1998 from an article on Duccio di Buoninsegna, d. 1318. Alighieri is documented from Dante Alighieri, 1256-1321. The client provided no documentation for adding di to the name, and without more information on the origin and meaning of Alighieri we could not determine whether this was a reasonable variant.
7) Eleanor of Huntingdon--New Name and {Device.
Per saltire wavy vert and argent, in pale two open books in trian aspect argent and in fess two daggers palewise sable.}
Huntingdon is in Reaney, "Origin of English Surnames," 101, dated to 1011.
{The books in the device are drawn in trian aspect (perspective) and so we must return the device.}
{8) Erc mac Ewen--New Name and Device
Per pale sable and argent, a theatrical mask within a bordure counterchanged.
Erc is a Gaelic name, and so this has the same problem as Cera; it combines Gaelic and English forms within the same name. Eric mac Ewen, the client's original submission, could be registered, but as Escutcheon pointed out it is highly unlikely.
Because this gentle and Cera clearly seem to be attempting to register the same surname, and because we do not know whether he would prefer Eric or an attempted Anglicization of Erc, we are pending this submission. If we do not hear from the client, we'll include Eric mac Ewen on next month's letter.
There are no problems with the device.}
9) Falcon's Keep, Shire of--Badge Resubmission.
A falcon close per pale argent and azure.
The group's name was registered in 8/92.
10) Firmin Sewell{for Selkie's Rest--New Household Name and}Badge
Azure, a seal reguardant Or, in chief three mullets of four points argent.
The client's name was registered in 4/96. {The name was submitted without documentation. We were unable to find any evidence that either Selkie or Rest were ever used in a period place-name. In addition, the name needs to be submitted with a designator, such as House, Guild, Company, or some such.
The mullets of four points were blazoned as compass-stars. A compass-star has four greater and four lesser points.}
11) Gareth Aldershaw--New Name and Device.
Per bend embattled gules and sable, on a chief Or three roses gules, barbed and seeded vert.
Gareth and Aldershaw are documented from two different reports from the Academy of S. Gabriel, neither of which were sent to this client. Gareth is dated to 1593 in Withycombe. Aldershaw is referenced in a side comment from a letter, but it can be derived from the elements Alder- (from Old English aler, "alder", Reaney & Wilson, 5) and -shaw (from Old English sceaga, "woods", ibid., 404). Thus it is a reasonable constructed name.
{The line of division on the device begins at the corner below the chief. This is a standard practice.}
12) Geoffrey de la Brugge--Device Resubmission
Sable, in pale two fleurs-de-lys argent.
The client's name was registered 7/96. His original submission, Sable, a chevron between two fleurs-de-lys and a unicorn rampant argent, was returned by Laurel on 6/97 for conflict. {It is clear of Sable, a bend between two fleurs-de-lys argent by the "simple heraldry rule." The two devices are completely different because the bend is the primary charge in one, and the fleurs-de-lys are the primary charge in the other.}
13) Julia Argent--New Name and Device
Per pale sable and azure, all semy of step-cut gemstones palewise argent.
Julia is dated to 1332 in Reaney & Wilson, 403, under "Shaper." Argent is dated to 1180 in ibid., 13.
Several commenters had problems with the uneven distribution of the semy. However, we found no requirement that the charges in a semy must be evenly distributed.
14) Juliane Hebert--Device Resubmission
Azure, on a lozenge argent an acorn slipped and leaved vert, a chief argent.
The client's name was registered 10/97. {The original submission, Argent, a saltire gules between in pale a fleur-de-lis azure and a thistle proper and in fess an anvil in trian aspect proper and a catamount sejant guarant Or, was returned by Rouge Scarpe on 6/30/97.} All the commenters pointed out that the acorn should be drawn larger and we will instruct the client accordingly. {This is why it is generally a bad idea to put charges on lozenges, roundels, and so on!}We found no default position for an acorn, but this may need to be blazoned as an acorn inverted.
15) Kolfinna Fitzsimmon--Device Resubmission
Sable, between two bendlets argent, three natural cinquefoils Or.
The client's name was registered by Laurel in 10/96. Her original device was returned 10/96 for depicting the flowers in trian aspect. {A cinquefoil is a stylized charge with five circular lobes. We're not sure if this blazon is correct, but this flowers are definitely not heraldic cinquefoils.
Two bendlets is a standard description in blazon.}
16) Margaret Fitzwilliam of Kent--New Name and Device.
Azure semy of candles proper, on a bend sinister argent three Latin crosses crosslet palewise vert.
The client dates Margaret to 1204(in Latin) in Stenton, Great Roll of the Pipe, 183 (Pipe Roll 50). Fitzwilliam is dated to 1203 in Archaelogia Cantiana, III:222. Kent is dated to 1221 from the Latin Kancia in ibid, 52 (Pipe Roll 65). Margaret is also found in Withycombe, 206. FitzWilliam is found in Reaney & Wilson, 171; Kent is in ibid., 263.
{17) Margreg Eranach--New Device
Argent, a walking-stick proper within a bordure per pale Or semy of trefoils vert and vert semy of roses Or.
According to the device form a name should have been included with it, but we did not receive a name form. Therefore I am pending this device.}
18) Mykhailo Zavadivskyi--Name Resubmission and Device Appeal
Per fess Or and gules, in chief a demi-arrow inverted sable conjoined in base to an eagle's tail grey.
The client's original name submission, Mikhailo Zavadovsky, was returned by Laurel in 4/97 for improbable construction because Zavadov means "factory town."
The client says that Zavid, the root of Zavadiv, means "mill" or "fish race" as well as "factory." He has also provided evidence for the existence of a village called Zawadow in Polish and Zavadiv in Ukranian. This village is located in Galicia, and he has provided further evidence that Galicia was an overwhelmingly agricultural area; according to Magosci, 425, less than ½% of the Galician population worked in factories in 1910. Since Zavadiv was a small village and clearly not an industrial center, he argues that Zavadiv has a meaning other than "factory town." Further, he provides seven late 17th-century citations for Zavadivs'kyi from Gajecky, The Cossack Adminstration of the Hetmanate. The earliest is from 1660, but when combined with the other documentation they suggest that Zavadivs'kyi is a reasonable period name.
The device, Per fess Or and gules, in chief a demi-arrow inverted sable conjoined in base to an eagle's tail grey, was returned by Laurel in 4/97 for having insufficient support for an exemption under RfS VIII.6., "Regional Style." The client has provided additional evidence in support. He has identified examples of Polish arms including Gules, an ass' head caboshed grey and Azure, a lion's head erased grey issuing flames gules. He has also identified the Polish arms Per fess gules and Or, a demi-arrow argent conjoined to an eagle's tail sable.
According to the precedents of Da'ud I, a person seeking a regional style exemption "must be documented (1) by multiple period examples, (2) from a variety of heraldic jurisdictions, (3) in the exact form of the proposed armory, (4) of comparable simplicity and style as the proposed armory." According to the precedent of Bruce cited by Da'ud, "multiple" means "at least a dozen." The documentation provided by the client does not meet these guidelines. However, the fairness of the guidelines is questionable. Given the paucity of available information on Polish armory, it would be difficult for a client without access to a major resource library to demonstrate a dozen instances of any practice in Polish armory. Further, the need to document a "regional" variant in multiple regions creates a catch-22 for a client who wishes to document a regional practice. Since the guidelines for the regional style rule effectively prevent its application, the appeal process needs to consider whether the current guidelines should be retained as well as whether this submission meets those guidelines.
19) Ossana d'Argentan--New Name
Ossana is dated to 1160 in Scott, "Feminine Given Names in a Dictionary of English Surnames." D'Argentan is dated to 1066 in Schulze, "Olive Tree Genealogy."
20) Roland d'Argentan--New Name
Roland is dated to 1133 (in the Latin Rolandus) in Reaney & Wilson under s.n. Rowland. D'Argentan is dated to 1066 in Schulze, "Olive Tree Genealogy."
{21) Rowena ni Troighthigh--New Name and Device
Sable, two pallets argent, overall a unicorn rampant Or.
Rowena is found in Geoffrey of Monmouth's History of the British Kings, a well-known medieval "history" of early England. We know that much of the book (including the story of Rowena) is not historical, and there is no evidence that Rowena was used by any real people until the 19th century, when it became popular as the result of its use in Ivanhoe. However, Laurel has ruled that Rowena is "SCA-compatible" and can be registered. However, Geoffrey wrote in English and there is no evidence that Rowena is a Gaelic name of any type. Therefore, we are returning this name.
The device is probably registrable as is, although an additional white stripe would make it paly argent and sable, which is a more common field.}
22) Rowena of Arundel. New Name and Device.
Barry wavy vert and argent, a stag's head erased proper.
Rowena, as mentioned above, is an SCA-compatible name. When combined with the English Arundel, it should be registerable.
Arundel is recorded in the Domesday Book, although it is not clear under what spelling--commenters using different editions of Domesday found both Arundel and Harundel. Normally I would assume that the non-modern spelling is correct, but Reaney & Wilson, 15, cite the name without an H. They also date Arundel to 1189.
23) Siani Glendower--New Name {and Device
Azure, two pallets argent and on a chief sable three crosses flory argent.}
Siani is found in Gruffudd, 85. Glendower is found in the entry for "Owen Glendower," where it is listed as an English form of Glyndwr. We assume that the name needs to be put in a consistent form, but wanted to send the name as submitted for comment so that the College could determine which registerable form of her name would be closest to the client's original submission.
{The device is color-on-color, and must be returned.}
24) Thorhalla Carlsdottir Broberg--New Badge
Purpure, a lur Or.
The client has included a picture of a lur from Bronze Age Denmark, although she included no text so we don't know what it is.
{25) Wilhelm von dem Ambor--New Name and Device
Per pale way azure and argent, a horse courant contourny counterchanged.
The client provided no documentation for Ambor, and we were unable to find any evidence for it in Bahlow or Brechenmacher, the two standard sources for German surnames. Therefore, we are returning the name.
There are no problems with the device.
{26) Yehudit bat Rina--New Device
Per bend sinister gules and sable, six pairs of stalks in saltire Or.
This client's name appeared on the 12/94 ILoI, but it does not appear to have been registered. We are pending this submission until we determine whether her name was passed.
The blazon for this submission is tricky, since there are twelve stalks of wheat, but the term semy of stalks in saltire suggests that there should be more than eight pairs. I've chosen this blazon as a possible solution, but I won't guarantee that it's correct.}
Done this ninth day of June, being the feast of Saint Ephrem the Deacon, anno societatis XXIII.
Alan Fairfax, Rouge Scarpe
Alan Terlep
5401 S. Cornell
Chicago, IL 60615
(773) 324-1366 (after 11am ET)