Saturday, October 31, 2009

AoA for Menno Suhrbeyer zu Hamburg

menno

The border is based on Paris Bibliotheque Nationale, Ms. lat. 10525, fol. 9v, a Parisian psalter dating to around 1270, reproduced as plate 26 of Pächt, Buchmalerei des Mittelalters. I'd picked the border thinking it was going to be relatively easy and straightforward, and then spent two and a half months pulling it out of the box, looking at it, going "augh! I don't know where to start", and putting it back. The calligraphy was done August 10; the initial drawn and painted, and the border drawn and inked on Oct. 29th, the background of the border painted on the 30th, and the vines, leaves, and whitework painted on the 31st. In the end it turned out nicely (until I dropped a splash of water on the calligraphy and it bled! Ugh!), though it only looks nice when it's not next to my exemplar, which looks much better.

I was originally going to use this initial, but when I actually sat down to do the initial, I'd forgotten that I'd picked this one out, and so did a different one, oh well.


© 2009, Sara L. Uckelman.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

AoA for Aldred of Alcazar

Aldred BL Burney 320, f. 2

I finally had success with penwork!! I figured out the trick: I need to have a design I can copy almost completely, with very little modification. This page is from British Library MS Burnery 320, f.2. The letter is actually a 'Q', but I moved the tail over a bit and called it a 'G'.


© 2009, Sara L. Uckelman.

AoA for Alvar di Castilforte

Alvar Codex Admontensis 139, f.48v

A back-log AoA I calligraphed during a calligraphy workshop I was running; the initial was one of the ones that I did for a friend a few months previously. Nothing terribly flashing, but not too bad either.


© 2009, Sara L. Uckelman

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

AoA for Dominyk Reinhardt von Hamburg (Dominicus Reinhardi)

Dominyk

Grants of arms (or diplomas of nobility) in German contexts date from the mid 14th-century. According to John M. Jeep, Medieval Germany: An Encyclopedia, the earliest German grant of arms was given by Ludwig of Bavaria in 1338. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find any further information about this grant.

The design is based on this image:

diploma

which according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_Heraldry_and_vexillology/Tasks is a grant of nobility to Seyfrieda von Rotha in 1464, from the chancellery/chancery of czar/emperor(?) Frederick III (possibly the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III). Though from a Polish context, the text appears to be written in German. Unfortunately, again I couldn't find any further info on the contents of the text.

I tried to find any source that gave a text, either in the original Latin or German or in translation into English, of a medieval German grant of arms or diploma of nobility, and failed. The text I used is based on a translation of the charter establishing the Duchy of Austria, Sept. 17, 1156, modified to be appropriate to granting arms to an individual, rather than the creation of a duchy. The text reads:

Gerhardt, by favor of right of arms King of Drachenwald, Prince of Insulae Draconis, and Lord of the Southern Reaches, and Judith, fair queen and consort: Although the right to arms may remain valid from the actual act of performing such awarding, and those things which are lawfully possessed cannot be wrested away by any act of force: it is, however, the duty of our regnal authority to provide witness to the transaction lest there be any doubt. Be it known therefore, to the present age and to future generations of our subjects, that we have, in the general court of Adamestor which was held on the Saturday after All Saints Day, in the year of the Society four-four, in the presence of members of our noble orders and by the counsel and judgment of all our subjects, made clear our intention to award unto Dominyk Reinhardt von Hamburg arms. Moroever, since by this act we wish that the honour and glory of our most beloved subject may seem in all ways to be increased, we charge the said Dominyk with designing suitable and unique arms that he shall register with the College of Arms. We decree, further, that no person, small or great, may presume upon the said Dominyk's right to bear these arms without the consent or permission of the said Dominyk. For the rest, in order that this, our imperial decree, may, for all ages, remain valid and unshaken, we have ordered the present charter to be written and to be signed with our own hands.

The silhouette for the coat of arms is based on the achievements found in the Bruderschaftsbuch des jülich-bergischen Hubertusordens, BSB Cod.icon. 318, dating to around 1500 (though the cute little hat comes from Anton Tirol's Wappenbuch, BSB-Hss Cod.icon. 310, dating to the end of the 15th C--1540.):

Huberts OrdenAnton Tirol

The scroll took two days to complete, Oct. 20, and 21.


© 2009, Sara L. Uckelman.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

AoA for Mael Duin mac Rogellaig

Mael Duin exemplar

The image is based on Mark 15:20-24, Book of Kells (Codex Cennannensis) fol. 183, late 8th or early 9th C, reproduced in James Johnson Sweeney, Vroeg-christelijke miniaturen in ierland, Amsterdam: J.M. Meulenhoff.


© 2009, Sara L. Uckelman.

Thursday, October 8, 2009

Silver Guard for Paul son of Brian

Silver Guard for Pol son of Brian

Pol

This was a last-minute assignment (a week before the event), and so I whipped it out of one of the initials I already had. But I got to put in a nice Latin text, so I think it came out OK. However, I'm not sure if it got to their majesties before they left for the event, since the first notice I got that the award was granted was in January coronation, and I'm not entirely sure whether this scroll was given out for it or not (since I wasn't at the event). In any case, it's no surprise if I post it now.

Here's the text:

Paulo filio Briani, salutatem, gratiam, et benedictionem, Gerhardus et Judita rex et regina Drachenwaldenses. Agnitionis tui virtutis militiaeque, offerimus ideo tibi admissionem in nostris ordonis argenti vigilis, qui confert jus ostendere insigne ordonis, armilla argentum facta draconis cum gladio. Datum apud Eplaheimr, xvii Octobris, xliv anno societatis.


© 2009, Sara L. Uckelman.