seals-msg – 2/5/08
Seals and signet rings.
NOTE: See also the files: Med-Seals-lnks, seals-bib, sealing-wax-msg, jewelry-msg, casting-msg.
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This file is a collection of various messages having a common theme that I have collected from my reading of the various computer networks. Some messages date back to 1989, some may be as recent as yesterday.
This file is part of a collection of files called Stefan's Florilegium. These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org
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Mark S. Harris AKA: THLord Stefan li Rous
Stefan at florilegium.org
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From: Chaz Butler
To: Janet Canning
Subject: Re: Sealing Wax
Date: 17 Apr 91 11:50:22
For wax embossers check with the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the Smithsonian, and any of the major museums in Baltimore, Maryland who have large medieval displays. Many replica sealers are available mail order for a relatively low price. Many ancient roller type seals are rather fascinating for their detail work.
* Origin: A.C.E. consulting: TIDMADT 703-370-7054, voice x6508
From: jeffebear1 at aol.com (JeffEBear1)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Wax Seals
Date: 29 Jul 1996 21:29:30 -0400
Attention all Sealers!
If you make alot of seals you need an electric sealer! I do wedding
invetations 100-200 at a pop. the electric sealer is not cheap but it is
not too much for a Kingdom to raise $ for. Basically you put in small
pieces of wax-comes in gold,red and silver, or break up bigg sticks to
little pieces (all colors) and it melts them. you push the button and it
drops a premelted blob on the paper like a cookie press only better. I
usually have two people working, 1 to drop the wax and one to press the
seal. we do lots in an hour this way it's REAL quick. No more running
back to the stove with a tin can full of wax (you know who you are!).
DragonMarsh 3737 6th St. Riverside, Ca 92501 (909) 276-1116
DRGONMARSH at aol.com has the sealer, and wax by the pound and sticks (sm
and large) and letter and some design seals. Small sticks make between
5-10 seals $5.00 and large 20-30 seals $9.00. I don't remember the price
for a pound of chips.
The time you save can be used to eat chocolate gingerbread! Misty
From: Elaine_Crittenden at dxpressway.com (Elaine Crittenden)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Sealing Wax
Date: 31 Mar 1997 19:31:48 GMT
Organization: Digital Xpressway - Dallas, TX
There is a company I used to have (downsized my company.)as a supplier called
Aldine.
They have not only the smaller wax sticks but ones large enough to have about
4 dozen "seals" in them, with a double arc per seal. Also metal stamps and
even stamp pads with real gold in them.
Aldine makes the wax used in the seals of official French government
documents, the rep told me. Good luck. ;-)
Elaine Crittenden (Dallas TX) aka Lete bithe Spring (Steppes, Ansteorra)
From: jotl at owens.ridgecrest.ca.us (James of the Lake)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Sealing wax and seals
Date: 22 Apr 1997 03:42:29 GMT
Organization: Barony of Naevehjem
dshaw at cs.jhu.edu (David Shaw) wrote:
> I'm hunting around for a place where I can purchase sealing wax and a
> seal. Ideally, it would be a place where I can design it and have them
> make the actual seal from my design.
>
> Does anyone know of a company that does that sort of thing?
Master Walthari does very fine work and sells the wax as well. He also
has a webpage:
Baron Walthari von Harx, OL, OLS, CAA, QC
mka Carl W. Lemke Unique Jewelry
5301 Anchorage
El Paso, TX 79924
Email: clemke at whc.net
url: http://www.web-span.com/lemke/
Heraldic engraving, signet rings, pendant seals, desk seals and period
style jewelry.
James
jotl at ridgecrest.ca.us
Date: Fri, 30 May 1997 06:45:41 -0600
To: markh at risc.sps.mot.com (Mark S. Harris)
From: "Carl W. Lemke" <clemke at WHC.NET>
Subject: Re: Pages with images of wax seals
>Do you have a catalog? I've considered having this done for my arms.
>Not sure yet if I would do a ring or pendant or desk seal. Do you
>know which of these would be most proper for the middle of the 12th
>century?
I don't have a catalog but do have some flyers that I will send to you at
the address in your message. Actually any of the three items would be
proper depending on what you want on the seal. A ring or pendant seal is
considered a privy seal and as such usually just the shield portion of the
arms or just the crest is engraved on it. A desk seal is considered a
grand seal and usually has a full achievement plus text around the outside.
Since the SCA doesn't register crests, most of the rings I do for SCA Folk
have just the shield portion of an achievement engraved on a shield shaped
ring.
Carl W. Lemke
SCA: Master Walthari (Baron Walthari von Harx, OL, OLS, CAA, QC)
Carl W. Lemke Unique Jewelry
5301 Anchorage
El Paso, TX 79924
Email: clemke at whc.net
url: http://www.web-span.com/lemke/
Heraldic engraving, signet rings, pendant seals, desk seals and period
style jewelry.
From: mittle at panix.com (Arval d'Espas Nord)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Source for wax seal?
Date: 24 Sep 1999 11:39:51 -0400
Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and UNIX, NYC
There are several Society artisans who make seals, signet rings, etc. One
is Master Walthari, http://www.signetring.com/
===========================================================================
Arval d'Espas Nord mittle at panix.com
Subject: Re: [SCA-U] Jewelry/Casting sources
Date: Mon, 20 Mar 2000 09:54:36 -0500
From: william thomas powers <powers at CIS.OHIO-STATE.EDU>
To: SCA-UNIVERSITAS at LIST.UVM.EDU
> I'm starting to venture in casting/jewelry making to make wax seal
> matrices. My study of seal say they were made by goldsmiths, therefore
> I assume they used jewelry techniques to create them.
>
> Does anyone on this list (or someone you know) have any period sources
> for jewelry techniques or better yet, seal making?
> Clare de Saint Denis, Barony of Nordskogen, Northshield, Middle Kingdom
> Modernly known as Dawn Vukson-Van Beek, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
> dawnv at gryph.com
I'd assume that the seals were engraved; only the basic "blank" might have
been cast. "Divers Arts" has good information on casting of metals and
the making of engravers---I don't recall how much of their use he
covers.
"The Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini" is full of him making dies for
the striking of medals (actually he's pretty full of himself as well).
I seeem to reall another renaissance work or two on the arts (Ceninni?)
but I'm more toward the early stuff in general and iron throughout.
Now if you go with engraving I can tell you how to build a cheap
engravers ball!
wilelm the smith
Date: Tue, 06 Mar 2001 19:30:11 -0500
From: rmhowe <MMagnusM at bellsouth.net>
To: sca-arts at raven.cc.ukans.edu,
- Regia Anglorum - North America <list-regia-us at netword.com>
Subject: Re: Seals?
Since a question on Seals has come up again:
Seals and Matrices (from a posting a year ago by ME)
Dawn wrote:
> I'm starting to venture in casting/jewelry making to
> make wax seal matrices. My study of seal say they were
> made by goldsmiths, therefore I assume they used jewelry
> techniques to create them. Does anyone on this list (or
> someone you know) have any period sources
> for jewelry techniques or better yet, seal making?
Well, you could well start with:
A Guide to British Medieval Seals; by P.D.A. Harvey and Andrew
McGuinness, the British Library and Public Record
Office, ISBN 0-7123-0410-x, 1996, 133pp., many pictures.
Obtainable from http://www.countrybookstore.co.uk/
You could also look at the seals in:
Egan, Geoff: Medieval Finds from London: 6, The Medieval
Household, Daily Living c.1150-c.1450; Museum of London,
The Stationery Office Ltd., 1998, ISBN 0112904904. This
has a couple of more common seals for the ordinary man
in it.
Finds Research Group: Datasheets 1-24 $13.50 Oxbow, contains
an article on seals if I'm not mistaken. I can't find
my copy at the moment. Available from Oxbowbooks.com
for $13.50 as of this particulular week. (3/6/01)
Fox-Davies' books on Heraldry - especially the Art of
Heraldry.
Other books on Heraldry often contain information on
seals.
Kingsford, H: Seal Matrices with Screw-out Centres;
Antiq. Journal 4, 1924 pp.249-56, with illustrations.
Jenkinson, Hilary: Some Notes on the Preservation Moulding and
Casting of Seals; Antiq. Journal 4, 1924, pp.388-403.
This deals mainly with preservation and copying
techniques for archivists.
Jones, Michael: The Seals of John IV, Duke of Brittainy,
1364-1399; Antiquaries Journal 55, 1975, pp366-81.
Pakula, Marvin H.: Heraldry and Armor of the Middle Ages;
A.S. Barnes and Co., South Brunswick and New York,
1972. Contains a number of seals but no matrices.
Saunders, Peter and Eleanor: Salisbury and South Wiltshire
Museum Medieval Catalogue Part I, published by the
Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum, The King's
House, 65 The Close, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP1 2EN,
England, ISBN 0947535136. Contains an article on
Seal Matrices by John Cherry pp. 29-39 with a half
page bibliograhy. Worth looking up.
Steane, John M.: The Archaeology of Medieval England and
Wales; University of Ga. Press, 1984-5,
ISBN 0820307556. Contains a two page history of seals
with several citations in the bibliography and
various pictures scattered throughout the book.
Ward Perkins, J B.: London Museum Medieval Catalogue 1940.
Anglia Publishing, 1993. Catalogue of the wide-ranging
collection: includes an article on seals. pp.294-8
plus plates and illustrations, Book #16 £24.50
Anglia Publishing, Unit T, Dodnash Priory Farm Hazel
Shrub, Bentley, Ipswich, United Kingdom, IP9 2DF
Phone 01473 311138 / Fax 01473 312288,
anglia at anglianet.co.uk ('99)
Wilson, D.M.: Catalogue of the Antiquities of the Later Saxon
Period - Anglo-Saxon Ornamental Metalwork 700-1100;
British Museum Publications, 1964, ISBN 071411300.
Contains two of the only three Anglo-Saxon seal
matrices then known, the other being in Ivory. It
contains Bishop Aethelwald's conical seal (mid-ninth
C.) and Aelfric's seal-die.
Some I don't have:
Tonnochy, A.B.: Catalogue of British Seal Dies in the British
Museum; London, 1952. Seems to be a major citation.
Heslop, T.A.: Engish Seals from the Mid-Ninth Century to 1100;
Journal of the British Archaeological Assn. CXXXIII,
1983, p.16.
Magnus Malleus, OL, GDH
Windmaster's Hill, Atlantia
(c) 3/06/2001 R. M. Howe
May be used or copied on closed subscribler based email lists
within the reenactor circle, but NOT to the SCA_Universitas
list, the Rialto or any open newsgroup. May be used in the
Florilegium or local newsletters.
From: Andy Dingley <dingbat at codesmiths.com>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Museum of wax seals
Date: Tue, 03 Feb 2004 23:38:57 +0000
Organization: Codesmiths, UK
I happened to be at the Bath Royal Literary & Scientific
Institution tonight. Whilst browsing their web site, I found their
collection of wax seals. Not much as yet, but I know it's a popular
topic hereabouts.
http://www.brlsi.org/virtmu/seals/seals_home1.htm
From: Christine Huse <maria_elfsea at yahoo.com>
Date: July 18, 2005 1:04:51 PM CDT
To: ansteorra at ansteorra.org
Subject: [Ansteorra] 600 Year Old Papal Seals Found in Toilet Shaft
Hola!
I found this article and thought it was of interest.
Maria
http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=245506&;area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__international_news/
Sensational find in Germany: 600 year-old Papal seals
Greifswald, Germany
15 July 2005 12:34
In one of the most sensational archaeological
discoveries in Germany, four papal seals dating back
600 years have been uncovered from a medieval toilet
shaft in the northeastern city of Greifswald,
officials said on Thursday.
The four round seals cast in lead date to the papacy
of Pope Bonifatius IX (1389-1404). The 3,5cm seals,
each weighing about 50g, bear the inscription
"BONIFATIUS VIIII" on one side and images of the
apostles Peter and Paul on the other.
Regional archaeology office director Hauke Joens said
the find -- in the shaft of a toilet on the campus of
Greifswald University -- was "sensational".
He noted that over the years, individual papal seals
would occasionally be found in various places. But the
Greifswald find was the first in which several papal
seals were discovered.
The seals were first discovered last week by
archaeologist Joerg Ansorge.
"When I turned up the first one, I was completely
calm," Ansorge said. "But then when there was a
second, a third and a fourth, my pulse rate shot up
very high," the 40-year-old added.
The discovery came amid excavation work for new water
pipelines on the university campus. The seals were
buried in a wooden toilet shaft about 3m deep.
At this point, the archaeologists could only surmise
that the four papal seals had perhaps been contained
in a bag which was then given up for lost when it
inadvertently fell into the toilet. But another theory
was that the seals were thieves' booty.
The excavation work is part of renovation going on to
help Greifswald University prepare for its 550th
anniversary celebrations in 2006. Officials doubt that
the papal seals were in any way connected to the
university's official founding in 1456. - Sapa-DPA
<the end>