A Norse Epic AoA, on commission

When the call went out for submissions for TRM Wilhelm and Vienna's travel fundraiser I decided it was time to put out the offer of a scroll. I had no idea people would bid so hard for it! I was floored and very grateful that I was able to help the travel fund so well.

The winner contacted me and told me her husband had received his AoA but got a promissory... ten years ago. Not only was this a commission, but it was a backlog from AS42. I was thrilled to be able to fulfil not only the backlog but to create something in his new chosen persona.

I set to work and immediately contacted Nicol to do the words. He has an excellent way with them and I needed his voice to really make this scroll special. I'm honored he said yes. (and had the words to me so quickly!)

His persona is Norse, and the length of time it took him to receive his actual scroll and the fact that his persona changed over that decade meant that his story was much like the great Sagas that the Norse love so well. And, he's a blacksmith.

So I went back to Regin and his smithy, and the Saga of Sigfried, with words based on Rasmus Anderson’s translation of the Skáldskaparmál, and wrote it all in translated Rune. 

There is a Runic ductus that was published by Lady Helena Sibylla in her Faux Hands for Non-European Scrolls handout that I used for this scroll. I will freely admit that I should have done a little more research before translating the words into rune, and I didn't follow all the structures necessary to have a proper runic translation though I did follow what was already in the ductus. Any mistakes in the translation are mine. 

I have used the bottom roundel before, but in a rather different style - there I used the same color for the whole illumination and only varied the direction of the lines to give the piece depth. Here, I outlined the entire piece in black and gave the piece the look of stone with a wood backing. 

The original is on a door in Norway, a stave church depicting imagery from a Norse saga.  Specifically, the Hylestad stave church, 12th century.

One of the things I immediately noticed when working with this piece for the second time was how close the face shapes are to what we see in the Book of Kells and the Lindisfarne Gospels. The layout of the beard, and the shape of the eyes, as well as the lack of serious care for body proportions all lay very close to other illuminations of the era. I found that quite exciting to see. 

As he is Norse, the shield for his arms is round instead of a traditional heater shape. Although it doesn't look it in the photo, there is a 1" border around the piece. I have omitted portions of the original to clean up the look and fit my design. The piece is done on perg with Higgins ink and W&N gouache. 

The text: 

To the East Kingdom, and to its King Konrad and Queen Brenwen, came Brendr Bjorndall.  He carried the hammer of a smith, a great iron head on firm oak handle, and when it swang, Thor would laugh greatly in the sound of its strikes.  In the days of the 42nd Year, as Bhakail sees their Baron and Baroness invested, has he been called before the Throne and awarded Arms, thus his shield bears these marks:

Hear now the songs of the eagles, for no man now living or ever after would be born who would be equal to him in strength, courage, and ken.  Boldness and generosity has he above all men, and his name will be written in the lore of that great kingdom.

- words by Lord Nicol MacDonnaught