On December 1, I was pleased to meet with a group of aspiring and intermediate heralds from Østgarðr and its neighboring Barony of An Dubhaigeainn to offer over five hours of classes in the practice of onomastics and armorial design and registration in the Society for Creative Anachronism.
My thanks to Lilie Dubh inghean ui Mordha for her capable teaching assistance, especially on the names side, and to Sláine báen Ronán for writing up a description of the event for publication in the East Kingdom Gazette, reproduced below with her kind permission.
The fighting season has ended – Eastern minds and hands turn to indoor pursuits; Repair and Replace armor bits, sew new garb, or embellish something you already own, take a class…
In Østgarðr’s Canton of Lion’s End Seahorses and neighboring Ducks of an Dubhaigeainn gathered together for a Heraldry Symposium. The agenda was set to teach and learn about Heraldry and Heralding. Lady Lilie Dubh inghean ui Mordha, Pantheon Herald in the EK Submissions Office, and Lord Mathghamhain Ua Ruadháin, Seahorse Pursuivant of the Crown Province of Østgarđr and the Elmet Herald of the East Kingdom, taught a 5 hour session on the intricacies and idiosyncrasies of being a Working Book Herald, walking the class through the process of how a Device, Badge, and Name go from an Idea to Registration; what are the rules of construction for a name? How do you fill out those registration forms? Lilie and Mathghamhain accessed and projected onto a big screen the websites actually used, performed actual searches for names, and showed off the latest tips and tricks available to smooth the pathway of Conflict Checking and Documentation for both Names and Armory.
The Symposium was cozily attended by members from Østgarđr and An Dubhaigeainn. Good questions and informative discussion were all around. It was deemed to be a successful first meeting, with a hope for a Heraldry 102 class. That could happen in the near future, either Live or Virtually, with a tentative Focus on the use of OSCAR (Online System for Commentary and Response), what to say and how to say it.
Respectfully submitted
Sláine báen Ronán
Drake Pursuivant