Over the last few years, I’ve been periodically trawling through OSCAR and the LoARs to catalog submissions using the “Individually Attested Pattern” rules, known as “IAPs,” which allow for the registration of armorial designs which don’t fall under the “core style” rules of the SCA’s College of Arms.
The first version of this catalog was in this blog post from 2017, which I updated a handful of additional times over the subsequent years, but when I was gathering additional items for this update I realized I wanted to make a few changes to the way the information was organized and figured that was a good opportunity to create a new document.
The catalog below covers submissions reviewed in LoARs from January 2007 through October 2020.
While I have attempted to be thorough, I can not guarantee that I haven’t overlooked some IAP submissions — if you find more, please let me know!
This catalog currently includes 61 IAP submissions, of which thirteen were returned. Three of the accepted submissions were revised versions following an earlier return. While most of these entries were designated as IAPs from the outset, the list below also includes a few items which were submitted without Individually Attested Pattern support but for which others attempted to provide the necessary documentation during the commentary process in order to facilitate their registration.
In addition to the IAP submissions from the era of The Standards for Evaluation of Names and Armory (introduced in 2012 and known as SENA), this list also includes seven submissions marked with “RfS,” which date from the earlier “Rules for Submission” that managed similar exceptions under the framework of “Regional Style Exceptions.” Although these were not judged under exactly the same rules as current IAPs, they were the closest equivalent in the RfS era, and are included in the summary tables below.
Timeline of IAPs
It appears that the pace of these submissions spiked in 2014-15 following the introduction of the IAP rules, and has since declined somewhat, although the numbers for 2020 may not be representative of a long-term trend, as overall submissions volume has been suppressed by the Covid pandemic.
| Year | Total | Accepted | Returned | Old RfS |
| 2007 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 2008 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 2009 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 2010 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 2011 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 2012 | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2013 | 5 | 3 | 2 | |
| 2014 | 10 | 8 | 2 | |
| 2015 | 10 | 10 | – | |
| 2016 | 8 | 7 | 1 | |
| 2017 | 8 | 3 | 5 | |
| 2018 | 7 | 6 | 1 | |
| 2019 | 7 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2020 | 5 | 5 | – |
Regional Origins
Italian and German armory has been the source of most of these submissions, followed in frequency by English and Japanese.
| Region | Count |
| English | 10 |
| French | 3 |
| German | 19 |
| Hungarian | 4 |
| Iberian | 1 |
| Islamic | 1 |
| Italian | 21 |
| Japanese | 8 |
| Mesoamerican | 1 |
Exception Types
By far the most common use of IAPs has been to justify the violation of the core style’s contrast rules, distantly followed by exceptions to support non-European armorial elements.
| Type | Count |
| Low-contrast charges | 44 |
| Low-contrast multiply-divided fields | 8 |
| Unusual charges or depictions | 6 |
| Unusual arrangements of similar charges | 3 |
| High complexity and quartenary charges | 2 |
| Unusual animal type or posture | 2 |
| Multiple divisions of more than two tinctures | 1 |
| Ordinary with unusual complex line | 1 |
| Unusual overall arrangement | 1 |
Other Resources
These other resources may be of use to you in constructing additional IAP submissions:
- Emma de Fetherstan’s “From Wreath: Individually Attested Patterns and You” in the Cover Letter of the April 2013 LoAR.
- Richenda du Jardin’s “Documenting an Individually Attested Pattern” in the Proceedings of the 2014 An Tir Kingdom Heraldic & Scribal Symposium.
- The “Tincture IAP Database” listing of over a hundred examples of period armory which violate the rule of tincture; you can add more examples using this form.
English
GYRONNY GULES AND SABLE
- Þyri Tyrkisdottir. Gyronny gules and sable, a tree blasted and eradicated between three mullets of six points one and two argent. (OSCAR, LOAR 2017/01, Returned)
- Exception documented: Gyronny gules and sable with charges.
- Unsupported: mullets of six points.
- Gilly Wede. Gyronny gules and sable, a gillyflower argent between eight bees in annulo Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2015/12)
- Exception documented: Gyronny gules and sable with charges.
- James Yale. Gyronny sable and gules, a cross of Saint Julian Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2012/07)
- Exception documented: Gyronny gules and sable with charges.
- Jacquelle d’Artois. Gyronny gules and sable, two sea-horses respectant Or and a sunflower proper. (OSCAR, LoAR 2014/09)
- Exception documented: Gyronny gules and sable with charges.
- Cedric Helmbreker. Gyronny arrondi sable and gules, a roundel within a bordure argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2018/11, Returned)
- Exception documented: gules and sable gyronny.
- Unsupported: gules and sable gyronny arrondi
- Cedric Helmbreker. Gyronny sable and gules, a roundel and a bordure argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2020/08)
- Exception documented: gules and sable gyronny.
- Attested arrangements: low-contrast gyronny with contrasting primary charges low- or high-contrast peripheral secondaries.
- Also found: bordures.
GULES FIELD WITH Low-Contrast CHARGEs
- Andreiko Eferiev. Gules, a cloud sable within a bordure Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2017/02, Returned)
- Exceptions documented: Gules field with sable charges.
- Also found: clouds.
- Unsupported: Low-contrast primary paired with high-contrast secondary.
- Andreiko Eferiev. Gules, a cloud sable. (OSCAR, LoAR 2019/01)
- Exceptions documented: Gules field with sable charges.
- Also found: clouds.
HIGHLY COMPLEX, QUARTERNARY CHARGES
- Juliana de Luna. Sable, on a chevron Or between three gryphon’s heads erased argent a crescent between two escallops azure and on a chief argent three torteaux each charged with a fleur-de-lys Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2010/07, RfS)
- Exceptions documented: Complexity count of twelve; quarternary charges.
- Winifride Barnes. Azure, on a chevron between three roundels argent the top two charged with griffin’s heads erased and the bottom charged with a rose sable, a crescent azure between two lozenges palewise sable, on a chief Or a fox courant gules. (OSCAR, LoAR 2020/01)
- Exceptions documented: Complexity count of thirteen.
- Also found: standard tinctures; chevrons, roundels, griffin’s heads, roses, crescents, lozenges, chiefs, foxes; charged chevrons between disparate charges; chiefs charged with a courant canid, and central ordinaries between disparate charges; a chevron charged with three charges between three roundels charged with different tertiary charges and a chief charged with an animate charge.
French
AZURE FIELD WITH Low-Contrast Charges
- Adrienne d’Evreus. Azure, a fleur-de-lys argent and a bordure gules. (OSCAR, Documentation, LoAR 2016/11)
- Exception documented: Azure fields with a low contrast gules bordure and a high contrast primary charge.
GULES FIELD WITH Low-Contrast CHARGES
- Emil Camus. Gules, a rose argent and on a chief azure a key reversed Or. (OSCAR, Documentation, LoAR 2018/11)
- Exception documented: Use of a gules field with an azure chief carrying metal charges.
- Eve di Antonio di Rienzo Ruspoli. Gules, a fleur-de-lys within a double tressure Or, overall a label sable. (OSCAR, LoAR 2014/09)
- Exception documented: Gules fields with a low contrast sable label and a high contrast double tressure.
German
ARGENT FIELD WITH Low-Contrast CHARGES
- Ariana verch Gwenllian. Device change. Argent, a pile bendwise Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2013/12)
- Exception documented: Metal ordinaries on metal fields, as well as the very German motif of a pile issuing from a corner of the field.
AZURE FIELD WITH LOW-CONTRAST CHARGES
- Irmgard Hasenschlaf. Azure, a brown demi-hare proper. (OSCAR, LoAR 2009/01, RfS)
- Exception documented: Use of a brown beast on an azure field.
- Miquel d’Orion. Azure, on a pale gules three mullets of six points Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2015/02)
- Exception documented: Charged gules ordinaries on azure fields, as well as the use of tertiary six-pointed mullets.
- Miquel d’Orion. Azure, on a shakefork gules, three mullets of six points Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2015/02)
- Exception documented: Charged gules ordinaries on azure fields, as well as the use of tertiary six-pointed mullets and the existence of the shakefork.
- Ts’ai T’ien-p’u. Azure, a torteau and a chief argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2020/08)
- Exception documented: color field with color primary charge and metal peripheral charge.
GULES FIELD WITH Low-contrast CHARGES
- Robert Langeschwert. Gules, two bear’s paws couped addorsed sable. (OSCAR, LoAR 2015/12)
- Exception documented: Two sable charges on a gules field.
- Heinrich Schreiber. Gules, on a fess sable three mullets of six points argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2014/10)
- Exception documented: Gules, on an ordinary sable, three charges metal.
- Karin Jacobsdotter. Per bend gules and Or, in bend sinister an anvil and a domestic cat sejant contourny sable. (OSCAR, LoAR 2013/11, Returned)
- Exception documented: Use of black charges on red on divided fields.
- Unsupported: black charges paired with a dissimilar, high contrast charge on the other side of the field.
- Murienne l’aloiere. Gules, three furisons sable. (OSCAR, LoAR 2010/07, RfS)
- Exception documented: Use of complex sable primary charges alone on a gules field.
- Kevin Ost. Gules, in fess three spears sable. (OSCAR, LoAR 2017/06, Returned)
- Exception documented: Use of black charges on red.
- Unsupported: black on red with three palewise charges.
- Guillem Cosinier. Gules, a cleaver sable. (OSCAR, LoAR 2020/07)
- Exception documented: Gules field with sable charge. Also found: cleaver.
SABLE FIELD WITH Low-contrast CHARGES
- Ellisif Styrbjarnardóttir. Sable, a bear’s head couped contourny gules. (OSCAR, LoAR 2014/07)
- Exception documented: Use of complex gules primary charges on sable fields, as well as bear’s heads couped.
- Susannah Scarlet. Sable, a chess rook gules and an orle argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2015/10, Returned)
- Exception documented: Use of gules primary charges on sable fields.
- Unsupported: red on black when paired with a high-contrast peripheral ordinary.
Divided GULES AND SABLE FIELD WITH Low-Contrast COUNTERCHANGed Charge
- Madison Morai. Per pale gules and sable, a sun counterchanged. (OSCAR, LoAR 2016/12)
- Exception documented: Use of per pale fields using gules and sable with counterchanged charges.
- Also found: suns and roses as charges.
- Nur of the Angels. Per pale sable and gules, a rose counterchanged. (OSCAR, LoAR 2018/01)
- Exception documented: Use of per pale fields using gules and sable with counterchanged charges.
- Also found: roses.
- Westley Morgan. Per pale gules and sable, a dragon’s head couped contourny counterchanged. (OSCAR, LoAR 2019/12, Returned)
- Exception documented: gules-and-sable fields with low-contrast charges counterchanged over a per-pale line of division. Also found: dragon’s heads.
- Unsupported: asymmetrical animate charges counterchanged over a low-contrast line of division.
MULTIPLY-DIVIDED AZURE AND GULES FIELD
- Eginolf von Basel. Bendy azure and gules, a wolf’s head contourny erased Or maintaining in its mouth an egg argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2013/07, Returned)
- Exception documented: Low-contrast multiply-divided field.
- Unsupported: Use of a low-contrast multiply-divided primary charge when obscured by a charges.
- Eginolf von Basel. Per fess gules and bendy gules and azure, in chief an egg argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2015/02)
- Exception documented: Divided fields of more than four parts in combinations of gules and azure, both uncharged or charged with argent charges.
PRIMARY CHARGE OVERLAYING A CHIEF
- Marek Casimir of Krakow. Checky sable and argent, a chief enarched Or and overall an eagle displayed gules. (OSCAR 1, OSCAR 2, LoAR 2013/06)
- Exception documented: A primary charge overlying a chief.
Hungarian
AZURE FIELD WITH Low-contrast CHARGEs
- Victor Ispan. Azure, a raven sable perched atop a trimount vert and in chief two mullets argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2007/03, RfS)
- Exception documented: Use of complex dark or sable charges on azure fields; for vert trimounts, mounts, or bases with azure fields, some with dark or sable charges standing on them; for light-colored peripheral stars, often accompanying otherwise low-contrast designs; and for the use of all three design elements together.
- Veoreos Miklos. Azure, an eagle sable and in chief a decrescent and a mullet of eight points argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2017/06)
- Exception documented: The motif of a sable eagle displayed upon an azure field with high-contrast mullets and decrescents in chief.
- Rakonczay Gergely. Azure, a boar statant sable transfixed by an arrow bendwise sinister Or and in chief a decrescent argent and a mullet of eight points Or. (OSCAR 1, OSCAR 2, LoAR 2008/01, RfS)
- Exception documented: Use of a sable beast on an azure field, argent decrescents with Or suns, and sable animals transfixed by Or arrows.
GULES FIELD WITH Low-Contrast CHARGES
- Lada Monguligin. Gules, a sans-serif letter “M” inverted surmounted by a pallet couped argent issuant from a trimount vert. (Kingdom OSCAR, OSCAR, LoAR 2013/03)
- Exception documented: Use of a gules field with vert mounts or trimounts.
Iberian
GULES FIELD WITH Low-Contrast Charges
- Bridget Wynter. Gules, a lion Or and a bordure azure crescenty argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2015/06)
- Exception documented: Charged low-contrast bordures.
- Also found: lions and crescents.
Islamic
ARABIC PENBOX
- Sajah bint Habushun ibn Ishandiyar al-Hajjaji. Vert, on a fess gules fimbriated between an Arabic penbox and a lozenge a chalice Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2014/03, Returned)
- Exception documented: Evidence of the charges, tinctures, and overall design of this submission.
- Unsupported: no evidence of fimbriation in Islamic heraldry.
Italian
AZURE FIELD WITH Low-Contrast Charges
- Cristabell Rose Alwin. Azure, a bear rampant Or atop a trimount vert and in chief three roses Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2017/01)
- Exception documented: Use of vert trimounts on an azure background.
- Fortuné Stykewynd. Azure, a trimount vert issuant from a ford proper, in dexter chief an increscent argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2014/09)
- Exception documented: Vert trimounts on azure fields, as well as trimounts issuant from bases.
- Tuathal O’Sheill. Azure, an oak tree between a harp Or and a crane in its vigilance argent, all atop a mount vert. (OSCAR, LoAR 2017/09, Returned)
- Exception documented: Use of vert bases with charges issuant and other charges in chief, on an azure field.
- Unsupported: no documentation for tree, harp, and crane in the same setting.
- Arnfast Rikardsson. Name and device. Azure, a dunghill cock gules within an orle of chain Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2020/02)
- Exception documented: azure field with animate gules charge. Attested arrangements: low-contrast primary surrounded by high-contrast secondary.
- Also found: dunghill cock, ordinary of chain, loop of chain.
- Seraphina Delphino. Azure, on a fess gules three fleurs-de-lys argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2018/04)
- Exception documented: A low-contrast central ordinary bearing high-contrast charges.
- Sazia de Sarro. Azure, two magpies addorsed tails crossed proper in chief an escallop argent, a ford proper. (OSCAR, LoAR 2019/07, Returned)
- Exception documented: Sable fields with low-contrast charges.
- Unsupported: magpies, or birds with their tails crossed, or English-style fords, or this arrangement of charges.
AZURE FIELD WITH SABLE CHARGES, Low-Contrast Charges on Ordinaries
- Sandro dei Strozzi da Montefeltro. Azure, a lion sable, overall on a bend argent three fleurs-de-lys Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2019/09)
- Exception documented: Sable field with low-contrast charges paired with an overall bend with low-contrast charges.
ARGENT FIELD WITH Low-Contrast CHARGEs
- Giata Magdalena Alberti. Argent, a fess between three mullets of eight points and a fleur-de-lys Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2015/04)
- Exception documented: A low-contrast metal on metal central ordinary between low contrast secondary charges.
ARGENT Charge WITH OR TERTIARY
- Ile du Dragon Dormant, Baronnie de l’. Purpure, on a pale argent a pallet Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2015/06)
- Exception documented: Low contrast tertiaries on ordinaries, as well as the use of purpure for the field.
- Giata Magdalena Alberti. (Fieldless) On a mullet of eight points argent a fleur-de-lys Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2015/04)
- Exception documented: An Or tertiary on a complex argent primary charge.
Divided ARGENT AND OR FIELDS WITH COUNTERCHANGING
- Giata Magdalena Alberti. Per pale argent and Or, a fleur-de-lys counterchanged. (OSCAR, LoAR 2015/04)
- Exception documented: Complex single charges counterchanged on a low contrast divided two metal field.
- Beatrice Domenici della Campana. Per fess argent and Or, two roses counterchanged. (OSCAR, LoAR 2018/12)
- Exception documented: Complex single charges counterchanged on a low contrast divided two metal field.
GULES FIELDS WITH Low-Contrast CHARGES
- Konrad Kauffman von Regensburg. Gules, a demi-fox sable maintaining a banner Or and a sword argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2014/10)
- Exception documented: Sable animate charges on gules fields
- Also found: Demi-animate charges and animate charges maintaining banners and/or swords.
- Taddea di Avito del Pace. Gules, a goat rampant argent atop a trimount vert and in chief two acorns argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2018/12)
- Exception documented: A gules field with a vert trimount topped by high-contrast complex primary charges and high-contrast complex secondary charges in chief, and the use of goats, trimounts, and acorns.
SABLE FIELDS WITH Low-Contrast CHARGES
- Raffe De Massard. Sable, a bee Or and on a chief embattled gules three fleurs-de-lis Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2017/11, Returned)
- Exception documented: A sable field with a gules chief with a complex line, each bearing high-contrast charges.
- Unsupported: embattled chiefs; charged low-contrast complex-line peripheral ordinaries
Vert fields with Low-Contrast Charges
- Getulio d’Amalfi. Vert, a bend sinister Or within a bordure gules. (OSCAR, LoAR 2019/09)
- Exception documented: Vert fields with gules ordinaries; high-contrast ordinaries within low-contrast peripheral ordinaries.
- Also found: bordures and bends sinister.
- Biǫrn Eldiárnsson. Vert, a bear rampant sable within a bordure embattled argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2014/08)
- Exception documented: A sable animate charge on a vert field, high contrast bordures in combination with low contrast primary charges and complex lines of division.
MULTIPLY-DIVIDED FIELDS AND ORDINARIES OF MORE THAN TWO TINCTURES
- Richenda du Jardin. Per pale bendy sinister azure, Or and argent and bendy Or, argent and azure, a bordure compony argent, azure and Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2011/01, LOAR 2011/06)
- Exception documented: Use of three tinctures in barry, bendy and paly fields, and the use of a three tincture compony, and in the LoAR, low-contrast peripheral ordinaries.
A ROCK CLEFT BY A RIVER
- Gilia Maddalena Sofia del Fortuna. Gules, a demi-annulet argent issuant from a rock issuant from base proper cleft palewise by a natural river flowing to base argent. (OSCAR, LOAR 2011/01, RfS)
- Exception documented: Use of swirling lines to represent a flowing stream, and use of a demi-annulet to represent a bridge.
A CHARGE SUSTAINED BY AN ARM EMBOWED PROPER
- Giacomo Fornerigo. Or, a baker’s peel bendwise sinister sable charged with three loaves of bread Or sustained by an arm embowed issuant from sinister proper vested sable, a chief rayonny gules. (OSCAR, LOAR 2014/05, RfS)
- Exception documented: Charges sustained by an arm embowed proper.
Japanese
ROUNDEL BETWEEN ROUNDELS
- Hosokawa Gentarou Masahiro. Vert, a roundel between eight roundels in annulo Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2016/12)
- Exception documented: Use of a larger roundel between smaller roundels in annulo.
- Amano Zenjirou Nakatsune. Sable, in chief a roundel within six roundels in annulo and in base a barrulet argent. (OSCAR 1, OSCAR 2, LOAR 2016/04, Returned)
- Exception documented: Use of a larger roundel between smaller roundels in annulo.
- Unsupported: large roundel surrounded by widely spaced small roundels; single barrulet abased.
- Sólveig Þróndardóttir. Badge for Sugawara Miyuki. (Fieldless) An umebachi argent. (OSCAR, LoAR 2017/05)
- Exception documented: Use of a small roundel between larger roundels in annulo.
mitsutomoe / THREE TOMOE
- Samukawa Mantarou Yukimura. Argent, three tomoe in annulo azure. (OSCAR, LoAR 2016/01)
- Exception documented: Use of three tomoe in annulo with no other charge on the field.
- Kumagaya Kentarou Masamoto. Sable, six mitsutomoe three and three Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2019/03)
- Exception documented: Use of mitsutomoe with other charges.
- Yamamoto Tokutarou Hikaru. Device change. Argent, a mitsutomoe within a well frame sable. (OSCAR, LoAR 2019/03)
- Exception documented: Use of mitsutomoe with other charges.
JAPANESE CRANE
- Kameshima Zentarou Umakai. Argent, a Japanese crane displayed and in base a bar gemel azure. (OSCAR, LoAR 2016/04)
- Exception documented: Use of the Japanese crane.
BUTTERFLY VOLANT
- Yoshimizu Kitsutarou Kimimichi. Sable, a butterfly volant fesswise, wings addorsed Or. (OSCAR, LoAR 2016/12)
- Exception documented: Unusual posture for a butterfly.