On Sunday 19th The Fibre guild had their first meeting after a longer than intended post Faire hiatus. The theme was show and tell, and there had been a lot of work done to show.
My personal favorites include Lady Thordis’ very soft, and delightfully varied weaving samples, Barones Eleanora’s range of spun and dyed yarns, and the books of records, and Lady Solvi’s equally fascinating record book, and wide range of endeavours
Baronessa Isabel Maria enters her games box in the category “What revels are in hand? Is there no play, To ease the anguish of a torturing hour?”
Purpose
“At longer events it is not unusual to find yourself with nothing specific to do. While many times a pleasant conversation can be found, sometimes it is necessary to find a way to while away the time. As a child, I was usually directed towards board or card games, so I was curious to know what similar pastimes Isabel Maria might be familiar with. Once I started looking, I found there was a variety of amusements from the 16th century, many of which I have slowly been collecting.
Game Box Contents
Alquerque board (not shown), Gluckhaus board (based on the one found here), chessboard, decks of cards (in both the German and Spanish styles), pewter dice, knucklebones (my childhood set), Nine Men’s Morris (a gift from my parents), noughts & crosses (a gift) and dominos, as well as some instructions for various games – particularly card games.
Also included are jettons and limited numbers of various imitation Spanish coins of the 16th century, with which to better enjoy the period passtime of gambling, but without the attendant risk of financial ruin.
As many games and accoutrement as possible are stored in appropriate wooden boxes, metal containers or cloth bags of varying refinement.
Construction & Shopping
This project is more of a journey than a destination – this collection is constantly being added to, refined and curated to meet the needs of either my persona or various events. For example, a recent addition is the the alquerque board (see a forthcoming entry for that), and before that, a deck of late 16th German cards, (printed on card but without plastic coatings) to complement my Spanish deck (printed with modern finishes).
Verdict
I like having a variety of ways to pass the time between activities at events, or during the evenings at Canterbury Faire. Gluckhaus is a particular favourite.”
Resources
Not just an item of food or drink your persona may have grown, prepared, consumed, or known of, Meistern Christian has entered a whole feast in the category “Do you think because you are virtuous, that there shall be no more cakes and ale?”
Persona period inspiration and use:
A friend wanted to host a Christmas event with a meal (Southron Gaard, Festa de Natale, December 2018). He wanted a menu suitable for his Lady’s persona, i.e. late 1570’s Italian noblewoman. I chose to follow Scappi, a chef to various cardinals and pope’s, whose Opera dell’arte del cucinare was published in 1570.
I used Scappi’s recipes and menus to construct a feasibly accurate light summer celebration meal for Italy in the 1570’s.
Design, Materials and Construction:
I reviewed all the translated menus from Scappi I could find, and established the appropriate number of courses and dishes for a light feast. I reviewed the dishes on those menus, and arranged them as to the appropriate course in which they should appear (certain dishes appear only in certain courses). From those lists I selected a long list of the dishes I preferred. Christmas in Italy is obviously not in summer, so some flexibility was necessary in selecting recipes from both the summer and December menus.
I then narrowed down the long list of recipes balancing an authentic light Scappi summer menu with the modern constraints / considerations of the event: a menu of light dishes and salads appropriate for a warm summer evening, a balanced menu (for modern tastes), recipes I liked, available seasonal produce, preparation time and cooking facilities, recipes with a nod to Christmas (period or modern Christmas) and keeping a low ticket price in mind.
Here is the menu from the feast:
Primo servitio di credenza (First service from the sideboard):
Primo et ultimo servito di cucina (First and last service from the kitchen)
Secondo et ultimo servitio di credenza (Second and last service from the sideboard):
Here is a link to an article in FTT with some recipes from the event: https://sg.lochac.sca.org/docs/ftt/FTT-2019-06.pdf
Reference:
The Opera of Bartolomeo Scappi (1570): L’arte et prudenza d’un maestro cuoco (The Art and Craft of a Master Cook), Lorenzo Da Ponte Italian Library, University of Toronto Press, 2011, Terence Scully.
A castle for stuff, in a historic design
This is Mistress Taddea’s second Pentathlon Challenge entry, and she completed it within two days, which is impressive. It is a Skjoldehamn hood, and was made for a newcomer, and given to them to wear at their first event. It is an entry in the categories One Metre Material Project, Give What You Get (gift for a newcomer), The Neck Best Thing and Embellish It.
Fabric and embroidery are both wool. Embroidery is simple chain stitch and running stitch.
Master Bernard from Darton submits this entry to the Challenge: a 14th century hood, with the pattern and colours coming from the Romance of Alexander. It is for the categories The Neck Best Thing, Cover Me, and One Metre Material Project.
As Master Bernard is the first entrant from outside the Barony, he will be receiving a spot prize of some Southron Gaard themed items. 🙂
