From: owner-scribes@castle.org (scribes digest) To: scribes-digest@castle.org Subject: scribes digest V2 #78 Reply-To: Sender: owner-scribes@castle.org Errors-To: owner-scribes@castle.org Precedence: bulk scribes digest Monday, June 15 1998 Volume 02 : Number 078 In this issue: [scribes]: [Mid] [Fwd: Scribal soapbox [scribes]: Re: [scribes] Lindesfarne Gospels ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 14 Jun 1998 21:10:54 -0400 From: Sally Burnell Subject: [scribes]: [Mid] [Fwd: Scribal soapbox >Return-Path: >Date: Sun, 14 Jun 1998 13:19:20 -0400 >From: Beverly Roden >To: sca-middle@dnaco.net >Subject: [Mid] [Fwd: Scribal soapbox >Sender: owner-sca-middle@dnaco.net >Reply-To: sca-middle@dnaco.net > >Greetings from Alexis! > >The following is forwarded by request of the writer - and is intended to >promote discussion and thought amoungst the readers... > >Her Excellency makes some good points... >Received: (from daemon@localhost) > by april.dnaco.net (8.8.5/8.8.5) id IAA29564 > for spot-outgoing; Fri, 5 Jun 1998 08:14:56 -0400 (EDT) >Received: from imo28.mx.aol.com (imo28.mx.aol.com [198.81.17.72]) > by april.dnaco.net (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id IAA29552 > for ; Fri, 5 Jun 1998 08:14:46 -0400 (EDT) >From: LadyAnne57@aol.com >Received: from LadyAnne57@aol.com > by imo28.mx.aol.com (IMOv14_b1.1) id 6QHBa14705 > for ; Fri, 5 Jun 1998 08:18:36 -0400 (EDT) >Message-ID: <8d46a7c4.3577e21d@aol.com> >Date: Fri, 5 Jun 1998 08:18:36 EDT >To: spot@dnaco.net >Mime-Version: 1.0 >Subject: [Ermine] Scribal soapbox >Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII >Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit >X-Mailer: AOL 3.0 for Mac sub 82 >Sender: owner-spot@dnaco.net >Precedence: bulk >Reply-To: spot@dnaco.net > >Once upon a time, a brash young illuminator attended a scribal symposium in a >land far, far away (Chicago, I think it was...). At a late-day roundtable she >listened as a Big Important Scribe (Laurel!) ranted and raved about "the >system" the midrealm had of doing individual scrolls, etc. At the time this >neophyte boldly said, "if it makes you that unhappy, why do you do it? No >one's making you." Another Big Important Scribe (Laurel, Knight, etc..) >finally laughed into the shocked silence and said "probably because we just >LIKE to." >I never thought I'd actually agree with the first Laurel....but I guess I've >changed camps. More and more I'm inclined to believe that our system needs >change. Scribes are continually taken advantage of (I've been watching this >occur for years) - given a matter of days or a couple of weeks at best to do a >scroll. Not just AoA's - the "big" scrolls as well. It's happened to me >frequently. The last scroll I did was for a Court Baroness award at Crown >this spring. I spent 16 hours - one LONG day - on the scroll. It's probably >one of the best I've ever done - and I did it with a temp of 101 and an >abcessed tooth - but I set aside a day to do it and get it done, and I did. >But that was luck - the really good scrolls demand TIME. >Bear with me for a minute. Theoretically, in my mundane profession as a >veterinarian, my time is worth about $100 an hour. If all pieces fall into >place I can actually earn a lot more than that. Stretching that line of >thought a little, that makes that scroll worth $1600 of my time. (OK, we're >assuming again all pieces are in the right place. Nonetheless...). But I >didn't do it for the $$ - obviously. I did it for the aesthetic pleasure I >recieved for turning out something beautiful for someone's special day. >And that's precisely what I got, so it's a good thing I wasn't expecting >anything more. My scrolls are signed. The recipient could have found out who >I was - but to this day I have never recieved a verbal or written thank you. >Which is exactly what has happend time and again. You could argue that the >aesthetic pleasure is all - but still, some acknowledgement of it would have >been nice. Given that in my experience, despite its emphasis on chivalry the >SCA boasts a per-capita quota of social retardation and boorishness roughly >equivalent to that of a bunch of drunken european football fans after a >winning game, I really didn't expect it. >It's my belief that of all the groups of artisans in the SCA the scribes - and >the signets - are among the ones expected to produce the most for the least. >Would you ask an armorer to spend 16 hours of time and material - gratis - to >REGULARLY produce "presents" within 2 weeks of an event? How about a >costumer? Even the cooks (another practically thankless job, in my opinion) >have at least some weeks or months to plan menus and set up the kitchen squad. >I try not to piss and moan without suggesting alternatives. Here are some. >Change the system. > - set a deadline of 4-6 weeks ahead of an event for award nominations and >STICK to it. Late nominations can be bumped to the next court. Fall back on >the old "or someone to accept for them" and let it go at that. > - change the method of gifting the award recipient. Ask for equivalent >donations from ALL the artisans: costume paraphernalia, bits of armor, bits >of jewelry, leatherwork, beadwork, even subtleties (if I've left anyone out >who wants to leap in here, feel free). Maybe fill a coffer at the beginning >of a reign for such a purpose (er, leave out the subtleties. A "Subtlety Gift >Certificate" maybe??) Lancelin once pointed out that the scroll isn't the >"gift" after all (to which I took umbrage at the time, but I now see the >point!) - and it wasn't in medieval times either. > - Use "Xeroxed" scrolls along with the "gift" (see above). > -Use the scribes on a comission basis. If someone wants a "real" scroll once >they have recieved an award, let them contact the scribe of their choice and >let the scribe be compensated for their time, effort and materials - a >business proposition set up between the scribe and the recipient of the award. >- "Just say no." If ALL the scribes and signets together petitioned the >royalty to change the system (Pick any of the above or something else >rational) it COULD be done and we wouldn't have to deal with this last minute >crap. We aren't , after all, monks in a scriptorium with nothing else to do. >We have lives, jobs (well, most of us...) and other things that demand our >time. But going "on strike" works - it even worked in medieval times to force >the hand of a monarch, from time to time. - so it's period! >If anyone wants to forward this to the MiddleBridge or anywhere else >appropriate, have at it. Many thanks for listening. >Baroness Anne of Winterskye (* AoA, OPF (x2), OW, CDH, Court Baroness >"Doing Strange Things In The Name Of Art." "Art who?" > >--+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+--- >From: LadyAnne57@aol.com >--+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+--- > ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 14 Jun 1998 21:57:51 -0700 From: "Thomas Brownwell" Subject: [scribes]: Re: [scribes] Lindesfarne Gospels Greetings and Thanks to Everyone for your help and suggestions. I do already have a copy of Blackhouse's "Lindesfarne Gospels", and am using it as a primary color reference. I tried most of the suggested color combinations that you all gave me, and I've settled on the following palate of colors: Red/Orange: Cadmium Orange with a touch of Warm Grey #1. Flame Red with a lot of Zinc White and a touch of Carmine Red also works, but is more hassle. Yellow/Tan: My final mixture has a lot of stuff in it. I started with Lemon Yellow and Naples yellow and a *lot* of White, but it wasn't red enough, so I cut it with a bit of Golden Yellow and it looks pretty good now. Blue/Aqua: I tried both Ultramarine Blue and Cobalt Pale Hue, each with a *lot* of white, and found that the Ultramarine created the closest match. The final mix was about 3 parts White, one part Ultramarine. Green: I had two good matches, White with Permanent Green Middle, and White with Brilliant green, and I decided to go with the Brilliant because it's got a better permanence rating. Purple/Mauve: I settled for a mixture of Purple Lake and Brilliant Red/Violet with a *lot* of white. The Purple by itself was not nearly red enough while the final mix looks very nice. In choosing one pigment over another I tried to pick the most permanent one available from the set. Nearly all of those which I finally settled on had a permanence of "A", with one or two "B"s. Also I tried to make mixtures that used the fewest ingredients. And finally I found that the primary tube I used in *every* mixture was by far Zinc White. In all cases because of the pastel hues in the Gospel, I used from 2 to 4 parts White to 1 part of any of the other paints. I recommend for those of you who wish to try this too that you first start with a standard size glob of White, *then* add small amounts of the other pigments until you get the right shade. As it is, I have only half a tube of White left, and a *ton* of mixed paint, enough to do 3 or 4 scrolls... Oh Boy, now I *have* to use it, don't I?!!! - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Douglas Brownell AKA Thomas Brownwell, Calligrapher, brownwell@home.com Dancer,Silversmith,Singer,Cobbler,... San Diego, CA Barony of Calafia, Caid The 4 elements = good physics stuff:: Or,a fountain, a chief rayonny gules. Goutte enough herald:: (Fieldless) A goutte barry wavy azure and argent. ------------------------------ End of scribes digest V2 #78 ****************************