AS 50 Challenge

[Depth Challenge] [Breadth Challenge] [Persona Challenge]

The A&S 50 Challenge involves doing 50 things in the Arts and Sciences between May 1st AS 42/2007 and May 1st AS 50/2015, in honour of the SCA's 50th Birthday.

There are three kinds of challenge:

The Depth Challenge : to do, make or learn 50 of any one type of thing, to push skills and knowledge to new levels
The Breadth Challenge: to do, make or learn 50 new and different things
The Persona Challenge : to do, make or learn 50 different persona-related things

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I've completed this in one sense - I've made over 120 commonplace books. I did learn some new things:

• quicker ways of doing the binding for mass production
• further evidence that the stitching I was using was used in period
• all the material related to the production and selection of content
• some ideas on period layout of such books

However, these were produced in two large batches, for Canterbury Faire and Festival, and so I don't really feel as if I've really met the intent of the challenge. There wasn't an on-going improvement in skills and knowledge as such.

If I can, I'll take a look at binding 50 books; ideally ones I have typeset in period style or printed out from facsimile materials. Failing that, rebinding published works into period covers. And, for the lowest level of attainment, reading at least 50 books that could have been in the Kerr family collection of educational and other works. Some of these will be reasonably easy to source; others may take some digging.

Mary Queen of Scots had 240 books listed in one inventory, so with a literate father and grandfather it's not unreasonable to think that I could have had access to 50 books. Admittedly, some of the works would not have been translated in English/Scots by 1566/7, but at least they were doing the rounds in various languages by that point.

Here's what I've managed to read through so far:

Books from Mary's Library:

• Rabelais Pantagruel
• Ptolemy Geography
• The Book of Hunting

Other books of the period

• Roger AschamToxophilus: The Schole of Shootinge
• Ariosto Orlando Furioso
• Boccaccio Decameron
• CastilgioneThe Courtier
• Froissart Chronicles
• Homer Odyssey
• William Latimer Chronickall of Anne Bullen
• Machiavelli The Prince
• Machiavelli The Art of War
• Sir Thomas Malory Morte d'Arthur
• Marie de France Heptameron
• Sir Thomas Moore Utopia
• Sir Thomas Moore History of Richard the Thirde
• Ovid Metamorphoses
• Christine de Pisan The Book of the City of Ladies
• Christine de Pisan The Treasure of the City of Ladies
• Pliny Natural History

Another possible Depth Challenge is to produce 50 maps. I've been working my way through the huge Volume III of the History of Cartography and could probably find 50 different kinds I'd like to work on....

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One of the things I am doing for my Breadth Challenge is to try to enter at least one entry into every Kingdom A&S competition during the Challenge period. It is not likely to reach 50, even with multiple entries from time to time, but it will give me a broad range of things I'll have to research and learn about, and that might spark the additional required. Some of these topics will overlap with the Persona Challenge, as I'll be attempting to find a link or a way to undertake the A&S project that ties in with my ever-expanding persona story and background.

Here's the list so far with links to completed projects.

AS 42
May Crown: Painting on Cloth or Leather
July Coronation: no entry (I was co-Steward for our first Kingdom-level event, so was rather busy)
November Crown: no entry (no excuse)
Twelfth Night Coronation: Banner in the Style of the Wars of the Roses

AS 43
May Crown: Period Favour (Velvet Sleeves)
July Coronation: Sonnet in Praise of the Queen
November Crown: Parade Shield
Twelfth Night Coronation: Earrings

AS 44
May Crown: Patents of Nobility: papers that show noble descent to enter lists

• Family Papers
• Patent of Arms
• Jousting Cheques
• Birthbrief
• Impresa
• Festival Book
• Family Tree from Heraldic Visitation
• Roll of Arms
• Armorial

• Manuscript version
• Late period printed version

AS 45
May Crown: Item of clothing or armour re-created from a portrait / illumination / woodcut: Turkish Venetian Coat and Chemise
Midwinter Coronation: Gardening - a treatise on the properties of a perfumed plant (in the style of Culpepper): A Crescent Isles Herbal

Other Projects

Things I have made or would like to make (these are in addition to the things directly listed in my Persona Challenge:

Jupon
A set of instruments as found in Holbein's The Ambassadors
A curiosity cabinet with contents such as cowrie shell, coconut cup, fossilized shark's tooth, unicorn horn
A proper set of roundels
Sundials
Maps
More clothes for my children: Achieved three items for Grace
A triptych, possibly of arms or some suitable literary theme
A clock
A selection of interesting things from Queen Elizabeth's New Year's gifts
More standards (you can never have too many -- 50?): the growing list: 26 and counting
Heraldic Achievements for Batholomew and me

I'm sure I'll be adding to this as the folk on the AS50 Challenge list inspire me.

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This is going to be the most interesting of the challenges I think, as it will involve making a much richer persona story to tie in divers elements. There'll be at least three generations involved in this, as many of the things I am doing will have relevance to my English grandfather (Francis Lovel), my Scots father (Richard Kerr) and my Venetian mother (Caterina Mocenigo).

Here's the current listing of completed and planned projects, some of which have involved other people or purchases. I'll be fleshing out the family history as part of this, but have included notes here relating the projects to the people concerned.

Francis Lovel (1446-1536), born in England, died in Scotland
In 1487 (June 16) fought in the Battle of Stoke; crossed the border and married Anne Kerr. Met Richard, Duke of York (whom others termed Perkin Warbeck) when he came to Scotland in November 1495, rode with Richard and James IV on the invasion of England in September 1496. Lost heart and stayed on the border thereafter, becoming Lord of Jedburgh for his assistance in quelling stroppy Highlanders and service to the Crown. Francis rode to Flodden with his King, but left before the battle (along with 20,000 others) when James took a week to dally with Lady Heron.

• Ballock Dagger (made by Edward Braythwayte)
  
• Wars of Roses standard with Lovel dog
• Patent of Arms

Richard Kerr (1490-1546), born in Scotland, died in Scotland
Son of Francis and Anne. He was a member of the Scots Guards of Francis I, jousting on the French side at the Field of Cloth of Gold. He left that service and joined Giovanni (de Medici) della Banda Nere's condittiere group; went to Venice after the Battle of Mincio when Giovanni was shot in the knee and died of gangrene; Richard was lamed. Married Caterina Mocenigo, who was the fifth daughter of a cadet line. Took an interest in local printing technology in Venice. Richard left for Scotland with their daughter after his wife's death in childbirth in 1535.

• Hat jewel (won off this big English guy in a dice game at the Field of Cloth of Gold, 1520)
• Birth brieve (a bit like a passport or patent of arms)
• Jousting cheque: two versions
• Impresa
• Festival Book entry for Rychard Ker
• Black sash a la Banda Nere
• Portrait (by an elderly Italian chap from Vinci who was at Francis I's court in Paris in 1519)
• Maps (collected from around Europe, from Leonardo and elsewhere)
• Astronomical compendium: compass, latitude list, ports/harbours, perpetual calendar, lunar indicator etc

Caterina Mocenigo (1500-1535), born in Venice, died in Venice
Married Richard Kerr; mother of katherine.

• Wedding cassone
• Garb from Venice 1520s (I'd love to do the Lotto "pumpkin dress")
  
• Turkish Venetian Coat
  
• Venetian Chemise
• Zibellino
• Venetian painted sea-farer's thank you panel
• Bookmarks
• Venetian betrothal/birthing gifts: rings, coins, coral teether, ribbons, gloves, handkerchiefs, thimbles, spindles, globes, jewellry boxes, Venetian necklace
• Deschi da parto: painted trays to celebrate a birth -- preliminary test done on a folding tray
• Maiolica birth set: a bowl with a lid
• An Arnolfini mirror
• Cameo
• Testament (as in will)

katherine kerr (1526 - ), born in Venice, came to Scotland in 1537, final year in Scotland 1567, then in the Laurel Kingdoms thereafter

• Annotated persona timeline
• Italian handwriting based on that of Mary Queen of Scots: reasonably happy with my hand now
• Library/reading challenge (see Depth Challenge above)
• Casket sonnet
• Pomander
• Mary Queen of Scots Rosary
• Learn Psalm 51 (the "neck" verse)
• Collected letters/journal: a la the Pastons for 1566 and 1567
• A copy of the Darnley death drawing
• A facsimile of the hare and mermaid poster
• A girdle prayer/commonplace book with a jewelled cover
• Mary Queen of Scots Earrings
• Luckenbooth brooch -- I now have one, but haven't been able to confirm if they were made in period
• Learn some of the songs from Mary's time and place: Achieved: as a member of the Southern Swans, I sang Depairte, Depairte at the Half-Circle Theatre, Canterbury Faire AS43; it really suited our step-down
• Kerr family tree from an heraldic visitation
• Armorial: showing katherine and Bartholomew
• Applied heraldry: chair seat, full achievement of arms

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