Lewis Tanzos
Eastern.crown@eastkingdom.org
23 July, 2002

Greetings and commendations unto the Heralds and Pursuivants of the East Kingdom, and others who receive this missive, from Tanczos Istvan, Eastern Crown Herald!

This is the Letter of Report (LoR) on the East's Internal Letter of Intent (IloI) number 2002-03, dated 23 April, 2002. Acceptances on this letter will be sent to Blue Tyger Herald to be included in an External Letter of Intent (XloI) to Laurel and the College of Arms.

In service,
Istvan Eastern Crown

1. Ailionora inghean Ronain - new name accept & new device return for redraw

Argent, a quill and trumpet sable crossed per saltire nested of four trefoils vert, a border nebuly vert.

Name documented using Academy of St. Gabriel Report 1846, dated to 10 November 1999 - no headers provided on the attached printout. It says that Ailionora dates to 1497 in OCM under Ailionora. ( http://www.panix.com/~gabriel/public-bin/showfinal.cgi?1846 ). Ronan from Tangwystyl's 100 most popular men's names in Early Medieval Ireland - no URL or date on photocopy, but it can be found at ( http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/names/irish100.html ) Lists Rónán, seen 47 times.

Submitted as "Ailionora inghean Ronan", we have placed the name into the genitive form. Names are acceptable for the SCA if all accents are present or all are removed. Since the submitted name has no accents, it's fine.

Though the partition line of the border is correctly drawn nebuly, the actual border isn nearly non-existant. The central charge groups would be of the proper size if there was a border, rather than just a nebuly partition line. Emblazon the border such that it is wider, and the nebuly part isn't the only visible part.

2. Aine Callaghan - new badge accept

(Fieldless) A gout argent charged with a thistle purpure slipped and leaved vert.

3. Alan of Rosley - new name accept & new device accept

Azure, two rapiers in saltire and on a chief argent three roses proper.

Alan from de Bracton's "Statistical Survey of Given Names in Essex Co. England, 1182-1272" ( http://members.tripod.com/nicolaa5/articles/names.html) gives Alan 32 times in the Feet of Fines. [PCA, printed 3/5/02]. Also from Gwynek's "Yorkshire Masculine Names from 1397" ( http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/talan/yorkshire/yorkm.html), also ( http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/names/yorkshire.html)

No documentation provided for surname.

Submitted as "Roseleah", no documentation could be found for the surname. The name, or rather a variant therof, can be found in Ekwall. Rosley Cu[ Rosseleye 1285 PNCu, Rosseley 1317 Holme C]. There may have been an OE hross by the side of hors 'horse'. If so, 'Leah where horses grazed'. (Ekwall p374 SN Rosley). When contacted, the submitter's herald (his wife, Isabel of Rosley) said that he allowed the change, but requested that the CoA try to find something with "Rose" in it.

We note the arms of Philipe du Lac (6/2001): Gules, two swords crossed in saltire argent and on a chief ermine two roses proper . 1 CD for field difference (X.4.a) 1 CD for change of tincture to secondary (X.4.f) There may be a visual conflict here, depending on the emblazon of the ermine spots, Laurel will have to pull the file, but we're going to assume it's OK.

4. Amanda of Stonemarche - resub device accept

Purpure, a unicorn rampant argent charged with a fleur-de-lys purpure

5. Anders Botman - resub device accept

Vert, an owl displayed ermine and in base an annulet Or

6. Aurelia du Vrai Coeur - resub device accept

Per pale gules and argent, a chalice bendwise Or distilling a goutte argent and a bordure nebully crusily counterchanged.

This device has a complexity count of seven, (gules, argent, Or, chalice, goutte, bordure, cross), not eight as one commenter claimed, and is therefore within our limits for complexity.

7. Baltasar Mondragon - resub primary name accept

Baltasar from 15th Century Spanish Men's Names by Elsbeth Anne Roth ( http://www-2.cs.cmu.edu/~kvs/mnames.html) shows Baltasar 4 times. Columbia Encyclopedia has a Baltasar Graci{a'}n, lived 1601-1658 ( http://www.bartleby.com/65/gr/Gracian.html) Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 5 has Baltasar De Echave, born in Spain in the latter part of the 16th Century ( http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05270b.htm) Mondragon from Spanish Names from the Late 15th Century by Juliana de Luna ( http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/juliana/isabella) Section on 'Complete List Of "other" surnames' includes 'Mondragon'. Section on "Full names of men: J-M" includes 'Lope Mondragon'. Section on " Full names of men: A-E" includes 'Baltasar' and 'Antonio Mondragon'

8. Baltasar Mondragon - new alternate name accepted

Alternate Name: Waki Souichirou Munenaga

Documentation from Throndardottir, Solveig: Name Construction in Medieval Japan . p. 65. One of the examples given in the second paragraph of the submitted documentation is identical to the submitted name (Wake no Souichirou uemon no daibu Munenaga).

The text in question reads: "Recently, such a nanori was constructed by agglutinating the initial morpheme in the zokumyou of the recipient with the final morpheme of the nanori of the monarch. Thus (Souichirou) was granted Munenaga as a nanori . Thus the gentle acquired the name (Wake no Souichoirou uemon no daibu Munenaga). Please note that the "no" is not actually written, but it is inserted by the speaker. "

Thus, according to the text, the name itself is modern, and its construction may be indicating special favor from royalty, which is presumptuous. When asked for a clarification, Solveig said:

Uemon no taifu (taifu is the prefered reading altough it is also read daibu) is a title. Normally, the Society does not register titles. Originally, uemon and saemon were also titles. In very late period, uemon and saemon appear to have become free forms. Basically, you should register: Waki Souichirou Munenaga, if Waki is inded the family name tha the gentle in question wants.

9. Barony of Concordia of the Snows - resub badge accept

(Fieldless), a helm argent

This is not actually a 'great helm', so we're going to send it to Laurel as simply a 'helm'.

10. Barony of Concordia of the Snows - resub order name accepted as "Order of the White Hare"

Submitted as Order of the Argent Hare , heraldic colors were not used for order names in period, as per the following precedent:

[Sentinels' Keep, Barony of. Order name for Order of the Silver Crane] Submitted as Order of the Argent Crane, there is no evidence that English used argent as an adjective. Therefore, we have changed it to silver as they allow. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR June 1998, p. 2)
As White Hare , it seems to be clear of conflicts. The construction <colour + creature> though uncommon, can be traced to 1327 (Poland) Order of the White Eagle and Order of the Black Swan (Savoy) 1350. Also Golden Unicorn can be found at Badger's web page ( http://www.nwlink.com/~badger/sca/ordernames.html)

11. Constance of White Birch - new name accept

Academy of St. Gabriel letter (no headers, no number provided. It is #1851, viewable at http://www.panix.com/~gabriel/public-bin/showfinal.cgi?1851+0) Claims that Constance can be found in Withycombe, though "Cunstance" is a more likely spelling. Does not support "White Birch" Plenty of support for "Birch", "of the Birch" and "at the Birch" in various dated spellings, most in Norman French from R&W. Also "Whitewood" appears as "de Whitewude" (1197) and "of Whytewode" (1276) in R&W. Talan's Gwynek Feminine Given Names in A Dictionary of English Surnames (http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/reaneyAG.html) shows "Constance 1279 Hoblet".

We are accepting Whitebirch as a constructed byname following the pattern <colour + tree name> exampled as Whitnash ('(at) the white ash') and Greenoak ('green oak'). (Ekwall, p 195 SN:Greenoak and p490 SN:Whitnash). When contacted, the submitter expressed a desire for the submitted form and not the more period "atte Whitebirch" or simply "Whitebirch".

12. Einarr Saelingr - resub device accepted.

Quarterly argent and sable a bend gules between two mullets of four points elongated to base argent

The bend should be drawn significantly wider. A bend should be 1/5th the width of the shield. As emblazoned, it is a bendlet, being roughly half the width of a bend. The SCA does not register single dimunatives -- a single bend is a bend, not a bendlet.

13. Flann Ua Guill - resub device accept

Or, an owl gules.

Clear of all of the following:

14. Hans von Bern - new name accept & new device return

Lozengy Or and gules, a bear rampant sable.

Hans from Gwynek's Medieval Given names from Silesia ( http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/talan/bahlow/bahlow.html ) Also in Gwynek's Late Period German Masculine Names ( http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/names/germmasc.html )

The Encyclopædia Britannica (1956 ed), s.n. Berne, states that Berne was founded in 1191 and became a free imperial city in 1218. Both Berne and Bern appear to be standard modern forms of the name. Berne is also found in Bahlow's Geographisches, undated.

The device, unfortunately, has at least the following two conflicts:

Berlin, City of- June of 1995 (via Caid): Argent, a bear rampant sable. Important non-SCA arms 1 CD for field difference (X.4.a)

Francesca Petrarcha – December of 1994 (via Laurel): Or, a bear rampant sable holding in its forepaws three apples gules. 1 CD for field difference.(X.4.a)

It is suggested that the submitter might like Lozengy Or and gules, three bears rampant sable , which appears to be clear of conflict at this time.

15. Isabel of Rosley - new name accept & new device return

Azure, a castle and on a chief argent three roses proper.

Isabel from de Bracton's "Statistical Survey of Given Names in Essex Co. England, 1182-1272" ( http://members.tripod.com/nicolaa5/articles/names.html) gives Isabel(la).

Please see Alan of Rosley, #3 above, for a discussion of the name change since it is the same name and Isabel (the herald of record for both) was the person who we contacted for the permission to change both their names.

The device conflicts with that of Michelle of Thescorre (May 1997), Azure, a castle and on a chief argent, three frogs sejant azure . There is only a single CD for changing the charges on the chief.

It is suggested that changing the chief to a complex line of division, such as indented or dovetailed should clear all current conflicts.

16. Julien Lapointe - resub device accept

Gules, three Greek letters pi Or within a bordure embattled Or

17. Koga Yoshitsune - resub device accept

Gules, three delfs conjoined in pall and an orle argent

The orle is very narrow. It should be drawn much wider. It is possible that Laurel will return this for a redraw with a proper-sized orle, but we're not certain, so we'll let Laurel make that decision.

18. Laoghaire of the Valley - resub device accept

Purpure, on a pale argent three oak leaves vert.

Consider Alison Bonaventure (May 1991), Purpure, on a pale invected argent, three shamrocks vert . There is a CD for changing the line of the pale, but we need a substantial difference between a shamrock and an oak leaf for these to be clear. Wreath is pretty generous about saying that two items are X.2 or X.4.j.ii clear (especially between two period charges where changing from one to the other was not used as a cadency step), so we're going to send this to Laurel for the decision.

19. Mirabel Belchere - new name accept & new device accept

Per bend sinister Or and azure, two wyverns statant counterchanged .

Mirabel from Hanks & Hodges "Oxford Dictionary of First Names", p219 Cites Mirabel as common in the late Middle Ages. Also from Withycombe, p221, dated to 1273. Belchere from Surnames Are The Fossils Of Speech by S., Brown, 1967, p20, and Hanks & Hodges "A Dictionary of Surnames", p44

Hanks & Hodges (either book) is not allowed as documentation by Laurel, and the other documentation for the surname is suspect as well. The Withycombe citation is fine. For the surname, Bardsley, pg. 92, s.n. Belcher, lists a Robert Belechere in 1273, and a John Belsire in the same source.

20. Patrick de Brues - new name accept & new device return

Or, a saltire, on a chief gules three cups Or, all within a bordure compony azure and argent.

Patrick from Withycombe p 239 "Chiefly used in Ireland and Scotland, but was common in the North of England from the 12th C." de Brues from R&W, p69, under "Bruce" - "John de Briwes, de Brues 1225, 1277."

While we found no actual conflcits, we must consider the following precedent:

When a bordure and chief are used together, the chief almost invariably overlies the bordure (Parker 73). The rare exceptions generally don't have tertiaries on the chief; they would be crowded by the bordure, rendering them harder to identify. The handful of SCA registrations with bordures surmounting charged chiefs have subsequently been disallowed as precedent (LoAR of Oct 91, p.17); far more often, such designs have been returned as non-period practice. [Device also returned for conflict] (Justin of Kent, December, 1992, pg. 20.
This device has the same problem, and we must therefore return it.

Additionally, the submitter should be aware of the registration of Bruce, former Royal House of Scotland - December of 1994 (via Laurel): Or, a saltire and a chief gules. Considering that bordures were normally used for cadency, the combined armory and name produces a strong feeling of presumption that recalls precedents of Rhiannon + White Horses and York + White Roses. Due to this, there is a possibility that any design based on this motif combined with the submitted name would be returned from Laurel for presumption.

21. Rainillt Leia de Bello Marisco (f) - resub name accept & resub device accept

Vert, two coneys respectant argent.

Rainillt from an email from Tangwystyl: "'Rainillt' is a solidly historical name in Wales". It also shows up in "Welsh Names for Children", Gruffudd, p. 80. Leia appears on p. 145 of Morgan & Morgan, dated to 1350. "de Bella Marisco" is also referenced in an email from Tangwystyl: "I can find a number of references in 13th century documents to '[de] Bello Marisco'." She references "The Record of Caernarvon", pp. 217, 225.

The device is clear of both of the following with two CD's:

22. Rhieinwylydd verch Gwasdewi Goch - new name accept & new device accept

Lozengy vert and Or, a pale wavy purpure

Rhieinwylydd from "Concerning The names Rhiannon, Rhian, and the Like" ( http://www.medievalscotland.org/problem/names/rhiannon.shtml ), states that the name Rhieinwylydd "appears in a 12th century life of saint Iltud (she was his mother)." From the Problem names project at medievalscotland.org, but used correctly. verch Gwasdewi Goch from Tangwystl's Simple Guide to Constructing 13th century Welsh Name ( http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/welsh13.html), lists Gwasdewi, verch found as 'daughter' and "Goch" as 'red'. The name appears to mean "Rhieinwylydd daughter of Gwasdewi the Red"

Clear of Giovanna Lena Caronna- August of 2000 (via Ansteorra): Per pale argent and Or, a pale bretessed purpure between in chief two wolf's heads erased respectant sable. 1 CD for addition of secondary charge to the field (X.4.b) 1 CD for field difference (X.4.a).

23. Serena Caterina di Tommaso - resub device accept

Argent, a fret within a bordure azure

While the actual design is quite period, the actual emblazon is FAR too thin. Period heraldry was BIG, BOLD and BUTCH. Double the size of every line and it should be much more period. We will let Laurel rule on whether this requires a redraw.