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S
U B M I T T E R S F A Q
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How
do I submit a name or device?
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There are three ways
to submit items to the AEthelmearc College of Heralds:
- Consult with a member of the College to craft a
submission. A full listing of College members is available on this
site. Just click on "staff roster".
- Visit Heralds Point at Pennsic.
- Put together your own submission using the forms available on this
website, and send the completed packet to
Garnet Herald. You may only self-process items that will be registered
to you, personally. Only members of the College may submit items for
someone else.
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How
much does it cost?
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| Each item (name,
device or badge) costs $10.00. |
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How
long does the approval process take?
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| Generally, final
notification of acceptance or return takes about 10 months after the
forms are first signed and mailed. A lot depends upon when your
submission hits the desk of Garnet Herald, how many submission are
travelling along with yours, and whether Pennsic or the holidays are
looming (The
AEthlmearc College does not publish an August 1st or January 1st
submissions letter). |
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Why
does it take so long?
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Here's a summary of
the process, step-by-step and month-by-month:
| Consultation,
forms signed, packet mailed to Garnet Herald by... |
mid-December
-
mid-January
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Items are
published in the AEthelmearc Internal Letter of Intent and in the
AEthelmearc College of Heralds newsletter (The AEsh).
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February 1
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Items
published in the newsletter are reviewed, discussed and commented upon
by the AEthelmearc College of Heralds for a period of one month.
Commentary letters are sent to Garnet Herald.
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February
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Garnet Herald
reviews commentary and decides whether to forward or return each item.
A Letter of Report communicates Garnet's decisions to the AEthelmearc
College.
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Last week
of March
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Items
which are being forwarded to the Laurel Sovereign of Arms for
final consideration are published in an External Letter of Intent for
consideration by the
College of Arms (the society-wide College)
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Last
week
of March |
Items are
gathered, processed, and distributed to the commentators of the
society-wide College of Arms.
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April
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Items
are reviewed, discussed and commented upon by the commentators of the
society-wide College of Arms for a period of two months.
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May
and June
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Entrails are
read... (just kidding)
The Wreath Sovereign of Arms (device submissions) and the Pelican
Sovereign of Arms (name submissions) hold meetings at which commentary
is reviewed and each items is slated to be either registered or returned
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July
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Final
decisions are made by the Laurel Sovereign of Arms
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July
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The minutes of
the monthly Laurel Meeting are processed. Ground-breaking decisions are
indexed into our growing list of precedents.
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August -
October
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The
decisions are posted on the SCA Heralds website and are sent to
AEthelmearc's submissions herald (Garnet Herald).
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October |
Garnet Herald
prepares and mails you your notification of Laurel's decision.
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October
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What
can I register?
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The College of Arms
registers:
- names (primary names, alternate names, SCA
group names, household names, award and order names)
- armory:
- devices (properly called "arms" if your have
your Awards of Arms, "device" if you do not)
- badges (used by individuals, SCA groups,
households, awards and orders)
An individual may register more than one name, but one of them must be
designated as a primary name. Any others are known as alternate names.
An individual may also register a household name, which may be jointly
owned with another individual.
An individual may have only one device, but may have more than one
badge, for a maximum total of four pieces of armory (one device and
three badges, or four badges).
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What
is the difference between a device and a badge?
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A device represents
who you are as an individual. It is like your signature.
A badge stamps something as being yours, or associated with you. It is
like a "property of So-and-So" stamp.
Devices are generally displayed on a shield shape, or on a "banner" of
some sort (there are a variety of shapes). Badges are registered on a
circular shape on our submissions form, but they may be displayed, in
practice, on any shape. In
period, badges were usually independent of a background. They were
usually a single "thing", even if that "thing" was complex. In the SCA,
such badges are registered as "fieldless", and are good period style
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Why
can't I be "Moon Unit of Camelot"?
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The College of Arms
registers names which could have plausibly been used in period by real
people. If we find evidence that Camelot was an historical place,
rather
than only literary, and if we discover evidence of a period person
bearing the name "Moon Unit", then theoretically, "Moon Unit of
Camelot" is registerable.
The best approach to choosing an SCA name is to choose a time period
(within a couple of centuries) and a culture. Then, look through lists
of documented names and choose one you like. You are more likely to
have a genuinely period name, than if you create a name and try to
wedge it into some shakey documentation.
Remember that all the elements of your name need to work together. If
we could document "Moon Unit" as an Arabic name, "Moon Unit of Camelot"
would still be unregisterable. Early Welsh and Anglo-Saxon people
simply didn't give their kids Arabic names. If you really have your
heart set on "Jean-Pierre Fujiwara of Seville" (French guy, Japanese
clan, from Spain), try choosing the single element you like the best
and crafting a culturally cohesive name around it: Jean-Pierre de
Rouen; Fujiwara Masamori; or, Juan de Seville
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Where
do I learn more?
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There are three
great
places to start learning more about heraldry:
- Explore the society-wide SCA College of Arms
website at www.sca.org/heraldry
- Explore the website of the Academy of Saint
Gabriel. The Academy is independent of the SCA, but there is some
cross-over in membership. It is dedicated to promoting the use of
genuinely authentic naming practices in historic recreation groups like
to SCA.
- Check out some heraldry books at your local
library! It's fun! (But you don't have to take my word for it...)
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