The Trinity College Library in Dublib, Ireland has announced that the Book of Kells is now available to view, thanks to the library's Digital Resources and Imaging Services. An iPad app of the book is also available.

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The Board of Directors would like to address concerns that have been raised regarding the sanctions process and related documents.

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At Their Court held at the February 16, 2013 College of Three Ravens, Their Majesties Khalek and Branwyn of the Kingdom of AEthelmearc offered elevation to the Order of the Pelican to Mistress Mathilde des Pyrenees.

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A tiny scrap of wool fleece, found in a grave, has helped to date an early Christian church in Maryport, Cumbria, England. The wool, which dated to the 3rd or 4th century CE, showed that a structure, accompanied by Christian burials, was probably a Christian church from the late Roman period.

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“It’s the find of a lifetime. I’ve been searching for historic gems for more than 30 years and found nothing like this.," said John Eldridge from North Berwick, who used a metal detector to find a 14th century harness pendant belonging to Sir John Comyn in a field near Loch Leven Castle in Scotland. (photo)

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The owner of an automobile in Ludlow, Shropshire, England has an unusual claim after 33 ft (10m) of the town's medieval wall collapsed, showering the car with debris. "Luckily no-one was injured when the wall collapsed," said Rosanna Taylor-Smith, councillor for Ludlow North.

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All may not have been sweetness and light between the Romans and the local inhabitants during the time of the building of Hadrian's Wall in northern England. A new study suggests that the absence of settlements and artifacts proves that the Romans ejected the locals from the area of the wall.

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St Oran's Cross, one of the world's oldest celtic crosses, will be restored and returned to Scotland's island of Iona in time to see the celebration of the 1450th anniversary of the arrival of St Columba. The 8th century cross weighs over a ton and will stand nearly 15 feet tall. (photo)

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In December 2012, metal detector enthusiast Morten Skovsby got lucky near the village of Hårby, Denmark.  His detector hit on a thumb-sized silver figurine depicting a Valkyrie, the only known 3D Viking representation of the battle maiden. (photos)

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Genevieve de Lironcourt reports that at Their recent Court, Their Majesties Jean Paul and Gilyan of the Kingdom of Ansteorra offered elevation to the Order of the Chivalry to Kira no Takuan.

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Steve Baker, Chair, SCA Ltd, reports that a replacement Membership Services website for the Kingdom of Lochac has been launched.

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Sir Guy LeStrange is seeking backing to attend and participate in the Battle of Nations, "an international, full contact with steel weapons, no holds barred, western martial arts competition and festival." The 2013 event will take place in France.

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Martin Bildner reports that Their Majesties Roak and Elizabeth, at various events, have chosen to elevate three of Their subjects to the Order of the Laurel.

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Laurels and Pelicans took to the field with boffers last year and raised over $3,200 for the Royal Travel Fund.  They faced off in three melees, and Pelicans took bragging rights by winning best two out of three.  This year there will be a rematch at Panteria in May.

Two of last year’s favorite parts – silly specialty weapons and fighting nicknames – will be back.  Last year the 24 peers taking part included the Kountess of Kaos, Mistress of Mayhem, Countess Plays Like Husky, Demon Queen of Heraldry, Baroness Happy Pants and The Killigrapher.  The weapons they used depended on how much money they raised.

The competitors before the melees

Weapons ranged from $25 for a single dagger to $100 for specialty weapons.  Specialty weapons included a boffer rose, perm of death (flail wearing a wig), giant ladle, bourbon bottle, Grendel’s severed arm and a very large clipboard.

Mistress Katherine Barr of Cumberland had the most unusual weapon form, namely Master Dietrich Schwelgengräber.  They bet each other who could raise the most money.  She won and wielded him as her weapon.

This year’s melees will again be sponsored by Fergus MacRae, Baron Carolingia.  Laurels or Pelicans who would like to participate should contact Mistress Catrin o’r Rhyd For or Countess Svava Þorgeirsdóttir.  More information on how to sponsor a participant will be available at the Laurels vs. Pelicans website, where you can currently see photos of last year’s competitors

Filed under: Events, Tidings Tagged: Laurels vs. Pelicans

THLord Stefan li Rous has announced updates to Stefan's Florilegium for March 2013.

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Their Majesties Rey and Miriel chose to name three new Peers of the realm during this year's Gulf Wars.

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The birth of the Renaissance in Florence is the subject of an exhibition at the Art Gallary of Ontario with the exhibition Revealing the Early Renaissance: Stories and Secrets in Florentine Art. The exhibit will be on display March 16 – June 16, 2013.

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Lord Avram ibn Gabirol reports that Jarl Boleslav, inspired by Countess Astrid, defeated Count Thorbrandr Olafsson, inspired by The Honorable Lady Hasanah bint Khalil al-Najjar, in the final bout of the Spring 2013 Crown Tournament in the Kingdom of the Outlands.

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Hadrian's Wall faces a new challenge: waterlogged trails that are causing grass and soil erosion along the trail. Natural England has awarded the Hadrian’s Wall Trust UK£50,000 for drain repair, but visitors can also help.

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The Board of Directors would like to address concerns that have been raised regarding the sanctions process and related documents.

The authority for and actions by the Board of Directors are granted by and described solely within the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws of the SCA (our Governing Documents). With respect to sanctions, this authority is found within Section V.C.3 of the Bylaws and Sections II.D and II.E of the Corporate Policies. The rest of our Governing Documents describe the authority and policies that govern Officers of the corporation, not the authority and/or policies of the Board.

The document titled “Board of Directors Procedures Manual” was a document created in 2004 as an internal set of suggested guidelines for earlier Boards of Directors. The document was outdated and has not guided the actions of the Board of Directors for at least the past seven years.  That Manual should have been rescinded and removed from the website once the current Board was made aware of the document. The Board had discussed such action many months previously, and made certain the document was properly removed at the January 2013 meeting.

All recognized SCA websites providing official documents clearly display the disclaimer that “information on these pages will always be superseded by paper copy available from the Milpitas office. Those versions of documents are authoritative for all purposes” – and the Policy on Electronic Communications within our Governing Documents clarifies that the governing version of all documents are those available in printed form from the SCA Stock Clerk, and that disputes over documents are always decided in favor of the printed version available through the Stock Clerk.

Although no such authoritative paper copy of the “Board of Directors Procedures Manual” was ever made available from the Milpitas office, the Board recognized that some recently sanctioned individuals may have relied on the contents of the Manual to guide their actions and expectations during the investigation and sanction process. As a result, the Board agreed to hear the appeal of those recently sanctioned individuals who included as part of their appeals that reliance on the language in the Manual may have prejudiced the investigation, resolution and/or sanction decision, whether or not “new” evidence was presented to the Board in the appeal. The Board took any reliance upon that Manual into account in the consideration of such appeals.

The Board of Directors has directed the Society Seneschal to review and revise the sanctions and investigations process, and the Society Seneschal has been working to consolidate information regarding sanctions for the SCA into a single document. The Society Seneschal is also working to streamline the entire sanctions and investigations process. He has engaged the Kingdom Seneschals and the Grand Council to assist in these significant undertakings. Proposed revisions will be presented to the Board for review when complete. Once these processes and documents are approved, they will be available to all participants on the corporate website and officially available through the Stock Clerk in the Milpitas office.

The first step in this process was to revise the Seneschal’s Handbook, to streamline that Handbook and remove the references to sanctions in that document, in anticipation of a consolidated sanctions process. That revised Handbook was approved at the January 2013 meeting and the Society Seneschal will be communicating with all Kingdom Seneschals in the next few weeks.

As always, any potential changes to Corpora will be communicated out to the membership for commentary. We encourage anyone with recommendations for improving these processes to communicate with the Seneschallate and/or the Board via comments@sca.org.

Comments are strongly encouraged and can be sent to:
SCA Inc.
Box 360789
Milpitas,  CA 95036

You may also email comments@lists.sca.org.

This announcement is an official informational release by the Society for Creative Anachronism , Inc.  Permission is granted to reproduce this announcement in its entirety in newsletters, websites and electronic mailing lists.

Filed under: Law and Policy, Official Notices