[MR] RE: heraldry

[EoganOg at aol.com]

In a message dated 6/4/01 2:13:40 PM !!!First Boot!!!, 
cbt4489 at glaxowellcome.com writes:


> So, here's what I don't understand.  If all we are registering is the blazon
> text, then any artwork we submit is only there to make sure that we blazoned
> it correctly.  The artwork is not up for approval.  Only the blazon is.
> Why, then, is there such an emphasis on the precise hue of the artwork?
> Gules is gules.  Any reasonable facsimile of gules should serve to confirm
> that the blazon is correct.  Even if the illustration fades to pink or
> purple, red is what we are asking for, and red is what we will get.
> 

This is another Heraldic Myth (tm).  Collect them all! ;-)  
Actually, what you register is the emblazon, the picture.  The blazon is just 
there for suggestion.  Heraldry is first and foremost a visual art form.  We 
do this for many reasons.

Number one.  Joe SCAdian may not be able to tell you what colors are Vert, 
Gules, Sable, etc.  But I guarantee you he can look at a box of crayons and 
tell green from red, etc.  So if we get a submission and the drawing is one 
color and the blazon reads another, we have a conflict.  Chances are that the 
submitter colored it in the color he or she wanted, and just did not know the 
correct heraldic term.  But when we have instances of colors actually 
changing on the forms, we can't tell that and so must return it for 
clarification.

Right now you are saying, wait!  You are talking about the difference between 
green and red, black and yellow, completely different colors.  What seems to 
be at issue is the fading of a color to a different shade of the same color.  
Well, that has problems as well.  How many medieval arms do you see that 
include pink?  Or orange?  The SCA does not register pink or orange.  But if 
the color red that you wanted changed to pink or orange on your form, then it 
looks like you are trying to register a device with pink or orange, and 
trying to slide it through as "gules."  We are an educational group, and we 
want to register correct heraldic devices, so we must then inform the 
submitter that pink or orange are not proper heraldic colors.

Same thing with other issues that may arise.  If your blazon reads "lion" but 
your drawing may be a lion or a wolf, or a dragon, or, if you see it in the 
right light, maybe a goat, then we really can't tell what it is.  Can we say 
it's a lion because you wrote "lion"?  Not really.  Maybe what you want is 
exactly what you drew, and you called it a lion because that is what you 
thought it most resembled.  Maybe a heraldic wolf more properly describes 
what you want.  We can't make those calls, so it has to be returned for 
clarification.

The important thing to remember is this:  The heralds are attempting to make 
sure that what gets registered is what the submitter wants.  We don't want to 
register something because it's how we interpreted it.  We don't want to 
register something that is drawn incorrectly without informing the submitter 
that it is drawn incorrectly, or else it will continue to be drawn that way.  
We are trying to help you. ;-)

Also take note that on the form, above where you write the blazon, it reads 
"Suggested Blazon."  And that's all it is.  The picture is the primary thing 
we have to go by.

All the rule against printers is saying is when you submit anything to the 
CoH, make sure that whatever medium you use is a color fast medium to avoid 
confusion.

Aye,
Eogan Og

Tighearn Eoghan Og mac Labhrainn, CP
http://www.albanach.org
Sacred Stone Pursuivant Extraordinary
Web Master et A&S Minister for the Canton of Hawkwood
"Checky Or & Vert, two lions combatant, tails knowed, in base a mouse 
couchant, all within an orle of roundels, Argent."
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