ÆTHELMEARC COLLEGE OF HERALDS - commentary archive
Letter of Intent #92
Aryanhwy merch Catmael


1. Clarice Roan - The evidence from Withycombe and R&W show that this is a lovely English name.  I found no conflicts.

The blazon doesn't really represent the fact that the charges are trickily balanced over the line of division so that the bird is wholly in chief and the snake is wholly in base; I'm not sure if this can be represented, but odds are that if it's not blazoned explicitly, it won't be drawn like this in the future, and that means that this would violate RfS VII.7.b "Elements must be explicitly, it won't be drawn like this in the future, and that means that this would violate RfS VII.7.b "Elements must be reconstructible in a recognizable form from a competent blazon."

The posture of the dove's wings should be blazoned.  I found no conflicts.

2. Fredeburg von Katzenellenbogen - I don't have any good sources for early German names, and so can't help with the given name.

3. Katerin Douglas Als’ Alexander - We do not register scribal abbreviations, so this should be expanded to <alias>, <alse>, <alsa>, or <alswa>.

I had a hard time identifying the flames in chief as flames; they look more like skinny leaves.  As blazoned, the phoenix should be overlying the line of division (which would not be registerable), but if you blazon this "in base a phoenix and in chief three flames" then it sounds like they are co-primaries, which they are not. Because the design is ambiguous, I feel it fails to meet RfS VII.7.b "Elements must be reconstructible in a recognizable form from a competent blazon."

4. Onóra inghean Chonaill - I found no conflicts.

5. Sabina de Lyons - Even if the names she cites are period, they do not support the construction with animal's as opposed to people.

There is no 'e' in 'contourny'.  It conflicts with William Keith FitzGaranhir (reg. 09/1999 via Atenveldt), "(Fieldless) A wolf's head erased contourny gules," with one CD for the field, but none for the type of dog.

6. Temair Ruadh - For the 14th C, she should be using the later-period spelling <Teamhair>.  OCM s.n. Temair note that there was a wife of a high-king who died in 665 by this name.  I found no conflicts with the name.

Some internal detailings on the cat would improve its identifiability. This is clear of Ságadís Duncans dothyr (reg. 02/2002 via Drachenwald), "Per pale vert and gules, a cat sejant between three drop spindles Or," with a CD for the field and one for removing the drop spindles.  I found nothing else close.

-Aryanhwy Albion