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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 28, 1991)
Heavy armour list. THe lighters use wooden swords wrapped with duct tape tor safety reasons; otherwise, their suits are kept as authentic as possible. Below: Junior Patti Roberts (Isabeau Beauvallet) and freshman Jeff Turner (Valen tine Drake) relax after Turner’s losing effort in the light armour list. 3K.ebrfral of tfje iHt&Me J\.g ts By Yvonne Salce mtitst ti\z mcinbzb area anb surrouttbeb tl\z aroma of tofoermg pint txzzs artfr fresli fruit, |llab^ Oltare (Ssabral ^eabl|ad]au stts ma^sttcall^ bmzntl\ tl\t flofotug canopy f0atd]tug ti\z perfor- — ttuo lorbs burling to tljr rub toitl| a stoorb in rarl| l}aub. ^er firrp, long braib of l|air flofos across l|cr tJHc- bicbal-stplc brcss as sl|c brinks from Ijcr goblet anb feasts upon grapes, cheese anb pieces of breab. mance Photos By Phelan M. Ebenhack With her are other ladies and lords of The Shire of the Shadowlands who, if seen from a distance, resemble an old Errol Flynn movie or a scene shared between Sir Lancelot and King Arthur. But the setting is neither a film nor the Texas Renaissance Festival —it is a group of men, women and children who gather every weekend to study and enjoy the lifestyles of the Middle Ages by re-creating them. Members of the 25-year-old organization The Society for Creative Anachronism re search the way people lived in Western Eu rope and its trade nations between 600 and 1650 AD. They practice the skills and crafts in the traditional garb of the Middle Ages. The Shire of the Shadowlands is the local group that includes members from Texas A&M Uni versity and Bryan-College Station. Hidden in the wooded areas around Hunt sville, The Shire of the Shadowlands and oth ers gathered to escape the mundane world and retreated last weekend to enjoy heraldry, fighting and weaponry, feasting, merrymaking and intrigue. Once settled in thier tents with coats of arms displayed, each individual — who may have just driven in from a test, work or other mundane tasks —assumes a different per sona. Each person in SCA creates his own name, history, nationality, age and even gen der within the period. Elizabeth Claire Shahan, whose persona name is "Clare Isabeal Seadhachan,” chose her name and history because it actually does follow her true family lineage. She says people often pick a time period because they like the style of dress. "Some prefer to pick a persona because the garb or dress for that time period looks good on them,” says Shahan, who recently grad uated from Texas A&M with a degree in horti culture. On the other hand, a person may choose a persona because they’re interested in a cer tain time period. Roy Heath, “Ere Fitzmungo,” says there are two ways people can develop their persona within SCA. “The ideal way is to have an interest in a time period and research it by asking profes sors and reading books. This way you have a history of yourself. “Another way,” he says, “is to come across a name you like and then work backwards.” In any event, a person can have multiple personas and does not have to know every thing about their time period. Many learn more about their past and other time periods as they participate in SCA events. The morning activities include making a fire, February 28,1991 armor check for heavy and light fighters, set ting up the Pavillion and morning court. All the Lords and Ladies and Barons and Baronesses gather for morning court. It is here they learn about the day’s activites, regula tions for fighting and games such as "The Quest" and the rules for assassins. The Quest is an all-day game. Participants are given a riddle to solve that eventually leads to a treasure. But probably the most fun and interesting game is one of assassination. Michael Farlow, "Michael Thomas," says as sassins were a large part of the Middle Ages. “People hired assassins to get ahead politi cally or to get rid of someone they didn’t like,” Farlow says. According to the Assassins Guild Char ter,“the main purpose of the assassin game is to create a sinister atmosphere to add to the Lite Style magazine enjoyment of others in the SCA.” For someone to hire an assassin, they must first take out a contract on that individual with the Mistress of the Assassin Guild. She decides the cost, and contacts the person to be assassinated. He or she may decline or accept. It they accept, an assassin is hired and the person awaits their attack. After morning court, members head to their pavillions, but not before shouting in unison, “Long live the Queen!” Each shire has its own pavillion that faces the fighting arena. There, ladies and lords gather to eat and drink. They practice the courtly graces so popular in the Middle Ages and partake in traditional customs. One custom known as the “cloved fruit” was practiced widely in the Middle Ages. Accord ing to history, men and women in the Middle Ages had teeth on the verge of being rotten, they often couldn’t eat their food until it was al most rotten, so they had bad breath. Shahan describes the cloved fruit and why it was so popular. “The cloved fruit is a piece of fruit with cloves stuck in it. Biting the clove from the fruit enhances the breath and made for better kis sing.” As legend has it, she says, if a cloved fruit is offered to a lady, she can accept it by biting the clove and giving the man a kiss. Whether it be cloved fruit or assassinations, the practice of “accepting” and "denying” an offer is widely used in SCA, especially with the fighting events. If an individual wishes to duel another, the challenger throws a gauntlet at the person’s feet. If that person wishes to ac cept, he or she will pick up the guantlet. It is usually to that person’s advantage, not continued