[Scriptoris] Fear Not! (was Re:originals)

[Ulf Gunnarsson]

Yes, I'm still on this list.  Though the recent slew of posts may
convince me to unsubscribe before my "World Wide Web" turns into a
"World Wide Vine & Leaf"!  *grin*

Mistress Serena wrote:
> But when people are putting as much, if not more, work into prize
> commemoratives as they could be putting into kingdom work, something is badly
> broken.  


As I believe you have pointed out in the past, "period" scrolls --- in
the context of grants as we use them --- were non-illuminated documents,
sometimes with a few words done in a different color ink.  Therefore,
the majority of the work done by the College of Scribes and Illuminators
is just fantasy art, at least from a reenactment point of view.  From a
living society's point of view, of course, the artwork has come to be
both expected and accepted.

All the ramifications of that line of thought could (and has been) the
subject of numerous other threads.  Let's just let it be for a moment
and accept it as an inevitable conciliation between two schools of
thought.

In that context, I would like to point out that the fine scrolls
presented to tournament winners are just as valid as what you refer to
as "kingdom work".

They have similar historical validity.

They provide written documentation of an individual's achievements.

They serve as a beautiful piece of art that can belong to only one
person.

They also showcase the talents of an artist, providing them more
opportunities for commissions.

Some people may only get one award in their life, making that AoA scroll
very precious to them.  When they get a Sable Crane, that puppy goes up
on the wall no matter how bad it looks.

But most people never win a tournament.  And that one prize scroll is a
permanent memory for them of a moment when they "strove with the best
and seized the gold ring".  Heck, the pretty scroll itself is a prize.

So, I don't think things are badly broken.  I think the society we
function in has evolved again, darn that gamma radiation.  A prize
scroll is just a necessary to the Kingdom as an award scroll, in that it
fills an expectation and therefore a need while carrying the same weight
as the scroll that goes with an award.

In the Old Days, a real glass bead and the right to sit at head table
might have been the prize for a tournament, and the spoken word of the
Crown was all it took to make someone a Lord.  But the SCA is pushing
forty now, and our wants and needs have changed.

So, now y'all know what I think.  Hit "Delete", "Reply", or "Mangle",
but don't hit the shiny red button.

Baron Ulf