Feast of St. Notburga
13 September, AS XXXVI
Greetings from Myfanwy!
Herein pray commentary on Æ LoI #52.
Firstly, I would like to respond to the comments made by Lord Garnet at the beginning of this issue of _The Æsh_. We (i.e., the College) don't necessarily *see* other commentary before the Letter of Report is published. As someone who has occasionally sent 'additional commentary', I consider it more in the line of an appeal of the decision. Incidentally, I noticed a couple of things about this letter:
Lady Myfanwy ferch Rhiannon
mka Ruth Morrisson
RMorrisson@aol.com
1. Æthelmearc, Kingdom of (badge) -- Fieldless, a demi-grayhound rampant contourny argent collared gules sustaining on a torteau an escarbuncle argent. I presume the re-appearance of this badge is as a courtesy to the College, and that any problems or conflicts were dealt with the first time around. The term "fieldless" should not be part of the blazon per se -- it should be in parentheses or brackets (I don't remember what the standard format is in the O&A).
2. Alexandra of Clan Donald -- Argent, a butterfly azure, a bordure wavy azure semy of butterflies argent.
I personally would have made the waves of the bordure a bit deeper, but it's probably all right..
3. Aleyne of Ravenswood
The Withycome docs are as cited.
I don't have Mills, but the Reaney & Wilson citation provided by Garnet is as given. I do think, however, that we might suggest "Ravenshaw" to the submitter, since this appears to be the equivalent name.
4. Ann of Banningham -- Per chevron azure and sable, an aeolipile argent, in base a flame proper.
The Withycombe docs are more or less as cited; it is unclear which form ("Ann" vs. "Anne") was used. However this spelling, dated to 1573, is given in "Feminine Given Names in the Registers of the Church of St. Mary's, Dymock (Gloucestershire, England: 1538-1600/1)" by Mari Elspeth nic Bryan (mka Kathleen M. O'Brien); the URL is: http://www.sgabriel.org/names/mari/dymock/ dym_women.html.
I don't have Ekwall. Reaney & Wilson doesn't give anything close.
I have never seen one of these things (it looks rather like something I saw in one of the Oz books!)-- just what is it and what is it for? While they may date back as far as the documentation claims, is there any evidence that it was still used in the medieval period?
Is there any reason why the flames are couped? Should this be blazoned?
The complexity count is seven.
5. Anna Maria de Wittes
The Withycombe docs. are as cited. Note that the combination of names is said to be (p. 26) common in the 18th and 19th centuries; however (p. 212) it also states: "The use of Mary [sic] as a second name (for men as well as women) arose on the Continent in Roman Catholic countries in the 16th C [sic]".
The Dauzet & Rostaing docs. are as cited. [Wittes is a header form; the dated citation is "Witteke"]
6. Azer Cane -- Argent, three piles in point azure, gules and azure.
The name docs for both elements are as cited.
Having differently tinctured piles seems kind of weird; I can find no evidence for it. The closest I can find anywhere are a couple of undated citations in Papworth (p. 1027):
"Paly of three arg. and az. in chief as many piles issuing from the top of the escutcheon and in base three cinquefoils all counterchanged. FERRIS [sic]."
"Per pale arg. and sa. three piles counterchanged. LYLE [sic]."
Neither of these are of the same type of tincture change as the submission, merely the only examples I could find that show piles with varied tinctures. It has a Continental feel to it (rather than the usual English/French armory) but I found nothing in Woodward, which is usually a good source for this sort of thing.
It is possibly registerable -- my suggestion is to kick up to Laurel with a request for further assistance.
7. Brychan Silverfist -- Gules, on a pale sable fimbriated between two dexter cubit arms two axes in saltire argent.
The axes are rather small, but I suppose that can't be helped under the circumstances. I would, however, have certainly made the arms larger, to fill the space a bit better.
8. Ceara inghean uí Mháille
The O'C & M cites are not quite as given. This is not necessarily a late period spelling; it may even be a modern spelling (c.f. p. 9, the section 'HOW TO USE THIS BOOK'). It is certainly a header form.
9. Chrestienne de Waterden -- Per pale vert and sable, a stag's head erased gorged of a baronial coronet and in chief three fleur [sic] de lys argent.
The cite from Colm Dubh ("An Index to the Given Names in the 1292 Census of Paris") is as given. The URL is http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/names/paris.html
The stag's head is rather low on the field, almost as if in base. I think part of the problem is that the antlers are drawn very strangely (and also very small in relation to the rest of the head. More standard depictions -- the PIC-DIC (fig. 236), von Volborth (p. 33, figs. 244 and 246), , etc. show the antlers sweeping back instead of forward.
Is there a reason why the coronet is the same tincture as the other charges, and is it sufficiently identifiable as a result? I don't believe that it is.
Correction of blazon: Per pale vert and sable [in base] a stag's head erased gorged of a baronial coronet in chief three fleurs-de-lys argent.
10. Chrestienne de Waterden (badge) -- Per pale vert and sable, on a heart argent, the phrase "COUER LEAL" [sic] sable.
Other than a regular repeat of banning the use of a single letter or symbol as a badge, the most recent Precedent ruling that I can find dates from Alisoun McCoul's tenure as Laurel:
The new rules technically allow letters and symbols on devices where they can be shown to have been used in period heraldry.... (LoAR 21 Jan 90, p. 13)
Having the phrase capitalized in the blazon implies that it is also capitalized on the badge; this is not the case, however. This is probably just blazon foo, and can be corrected by dropping back to lower case letters in the blazon.
11. Coletta Briant -- Or, a harp proper between for [sic] trefoils vert.
The trefoils are in cross.
Reblazon: Or, a harp proper between four trefoils in cross vert.
12. Cuilén Buchanan
The O'C & M docs are as cited (p. 66).
I don't have Black; however, Reaney & Wilson (p. 70) cite Alan de Buchanan [sic] c1270.
14. Geoffrey of York -- Or, six crescents pendant [sic] two, two and two azure.
The name docs are as given. However: While doing a Google search, I found Medieval Sourcebook: Gerald of Wales: The Death of King Henry II, from the Life of Archbishop Geoffrey of York [sic] (URL:http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/1189gerald-hen2death.html). Another site, called 'Royal Lineage' (URL: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Hills/1150/afk.html) lists Archbishop Geoffrey of York (b. 1159) as the (illegitimate) son of Henry II by Lady Rosamund of Clifford. I think this may count as a definite conflict with a historical person who was evidently known by that name in period. Is the title "Archbishop" enough to clear the conflict? I'm not at all sure that it does.
Correction of blazon (c.f. Parker, p. 451): Or, six crescents pendent two, two and two azure.
16. Gideon Lydiard
The Withycombe cites are as given. However, it also says: "Adopted as a christian [sic] name by the English Puritans and French Huguenots".
The Reaney & Wilson docs are approximately as given, but you have to also go to p. 278, to the header "Liddiard, Lyddiard, Lydiard, Lydiart" for the actual cite.
17. Jayne O'Neill
The URL cite is as given.
The Reaney & Wilson docs. are as cited. In addition, "O'Neill" itself is one of the myriad header forms.
19. Maddalena de Angeles
The URL is as cited; I suspect that "Maddelena" is a typo on the submission form, since the documented form is "Maddalena".
20. Magariki Kautsuichi [sic] -- Gules, within a mascle three lozenges one and two all fesswise argent.
I'm going to defer to Solveig on this (as in, whatever she has to say about the name construction I'll cheerfully agree with!).
Matsuya (p. 198, fig. 16; i.e., the bottom of the second column by Western style page layout) shows a mon with three lozenges in a similar configuration. (but without the mascle).
Possible reblazon: Gules, three lozenges fesswise, one and two, within a mascle fesswise [all] argent.
21. Magnus Buchanan
The O'C & M docs are as cited (p. 132). This is the early Irish spelling (c.f. p. 9, the section 'HOW TO USE THIS BOOK').
I don't have Black; however, Reaney &Wilson (p. 70) cite Alan de Buchanan [sic] c1270.
22. Ragnarr Gunnolfsson -- Argent, on a pile indented azure, a wolf's head couped argent.
The pile is drawn similarly to a device shown in Foster (p. 31): that one (belonging to Roger Bradstone) is blazoned as "argent, an estachés engrailed (5) [sic] gules". Papworth, however, (p. 1022) gives "Arg. a pile indented gu." as the arms of Bradeston, so I suspect they are the same.
The pile should probably not extend quite so far out at the top of the escutcheon, but is obviously because of the way the wolf's head is drawn.
23. Rebecca le Reven
The Withycombe and Reaney & Wilson docs are as cited.
24. Rodrigo de Serón
The documentation from St. Gabriel letters are as cited (one gives a late 12th-early 13th century Portuguese cite, and the other a 16th century Spanish cite). In addition, "Rodrigo" is found in "16th-century Spanish Men's Names" by Elsbeth Anne Roth (Kathy Van Stone); the URL is: http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/names/spanish-m.html.
The URL link cited for Serón doesn't seem to work. I did a Google search and got http://www.andalucia-online.net/seron/ which lists Serón as "a municipality in the province of Almería", but gives no dates. Another website (http://www.tourspain.es/turespai/ci01-07/ci048.htm) says:
If travellers choose the route along the Almanzora river, beginning in Cantoria, they will see the white marble mines on entering Olula del Rio and Macael, and can learn about the culture of 16th century Mudéjar art in the towns of Tijola and Serón.
A third website (http://www.iea.juntaandalucia.es/sima/cultura/04/ sm_04083.htm) is in Spanish, but appears to date the town to (I think) the 8th century, and certainly to the 14th century:
Sus cuevas estuvieron habitadas desde el Paleolítico. En época romana fue denominada Serius y durante la dominación goda formó parte del reino de Teodomiro, pasando a poder musulmán a finales del siglo VIII.
El pueblo actual data del siglo XIV cuando alrededor de una importante fortaleza se formó el núcleo de población.
25. Sabina de Lyons (badge) Fieldless, a lion's head caboshed per pale argent and gules.
Blazon foo -- c.f., item #1.
26. Solveig Throndardottir (badge) -- [Fieldless], two feathers crossed in saltire argent.
Blazon foo -- c.f., item #1.
27. Solveig Throndardottir (badge) -- [Fieldless], a lozenge fesswise Or.
Blazon foo -- c.f., item #1.
28. Theodor Hans Lochner -- Gyronny argent and gules, eight daggers points to center counterchanged a bordure sable.
I don't have access to Brechenmacher; however I did find a link on the St. Gabriel website to the article "Late Period German Masculine Given Names: Names from 15th Century Plauen" by Talan Gwynek (Brian M. Scott) that dates "Theodor" to 1401-1450; the URL is: http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/talan/germmasc/plauen15.html. This is a closer dating to the byname, if the rest of the Brechenmacher cite is as given.
A blazon query: is it possible to construe, from the blazon, this particular arrangement of the daggers (i.e., rather than having them overlaying the gyronny lines of division)? Or is it assumed that one cannot counterchange a long thin thing across a division line?
29. Ts'via bas Zipporah Levi of Granada (badge) -- Fieldless, on a glove argent, a pomegranate gules.
Blazon foo -- c.f., item #1.
According to Parker (pp. 304-06) a hand in this position would be blazoned as "fingers downward". In addition (p. 287) Parker shows a hawking-glove and gives the arms of Bartlett, Sussex as "Sable three falconer's sinister gloves pendent argent tasselled or [sic]." Since the default hand/glove would be a dexter hand, appaumy (i.e., palm facing the viewer), with the fingers pointed upward, this needs to be reblazoned.
Possible reblazon: [Fieldless] On a sinister glove pendent argent, a pomegranate gules.
30. Uthor Darras -- Or, within a vol a sword inverted gules and a bordure rayonny sable.
"A Welsh Miscellany" is _CA_ #66. The name "Uthr" is found on page 31. The Reaney & Wilson docs are as cited.
Possible reblazon: Or, a sword inverted within a vol gules, a bordure rayonny sable.
31. Washizu Isaburo Nobuhidé [sic] -- Sable, a fess and in chief a three petaled rose within an annulet argent.
This is how the name came through on the LoI -- obviously, there is some sort of missing character that didn't translate into a key cap character. Would it be possible to, when something like this happens, to have the missing character edited in by hand, so we know what it's really supposed to be? Thanks in advance.
I was unable to link to any of the cited URLs, so I can't check if the information is accurate or not.
I'm going to defer to Solveig on this -- if she thinks this name is okay, that's certainly good enough for me!
Artist's note: This "rose" is actually a Japanese mon design of wood sorrel (c.f. Matsuya, pp. 58- 63). Is there some reason why it can't be blazoned as such?
Possible reblazon: Sable, a fess, in chief a wood sorrel blossom [affronty] within an annulet argent.
32. William MacNess -- Gules, a semy of hearts Or.
Withycombe (pp. 293-94) gives "William" as a header form, and says the name "was introduced into England by the Normans in the 11th C, from which it has held its place as one of the com-[sic] monest men's names".
I don't have Black. Reaney & Wilson (p. 320) gives "Ness, Nass, Noss" as header forms, citing "Robert de Nesse [sic]" dated to 1177, but the derivation appears to be locative and not patronymic. Grimble (p. 192) mentions the MacNeish clan in a feud with the MacNabs in the early 17th century.
The semy is not well drawn. The hearts should be more evenly spaced and center, and should all be the same size.
Reblazon: Gules, semy of hearts Or.
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