Upcoming : Classes at SCA events - one

Blue Dragon Studium 3.5

When : Jan 20 – 21, 2024

Where : Woodview Community Centre, 151 Cadillac Ave N, Oshawa, ON L1G 6C3, Canada (map)

Description : The Canton of Ard Chreag hosts Blue Dragon Studium IV

website:  https://ealdormere.ca/blue-dragon/

I will be returning to a couple of teaching style events upcoming for the Society for Creative Anachronism, here in Ontario, over the next two months.

These are the offerings I have proposed / are scheduled for Saturday January 20

 

Historic Pewter Casting

8:30 - 12:00 AM
8 student maximum
14 years and up
materials fee = $10
Students will be required to be masked, considerable dust generated during carving / instructor protection

 

Metals have been cast into stone moulds since the Bronze Age. Simple pendants and tokens of pewter are found throughout the Medieval period. In this class each student will carve their own re-usable soapstone mould, then make several finished castings of lead free (tin) alloy, with needed tools provided *. The class includes a brief historic overview, a discussion of mould making methods and a discussion of designs. Students keep their mould block, which should have room for 2 - 4 objects (depending on size), 4 - 6 finished castings, a simple technique handout.
* Any students owning a demel type rotary tool are asked to bring them (four units provided).
http://www.warehamforge.ca/old-castings/oldcastings.html

Norse Iron 

 
2:00 - 3:00 PM

60 minute lecture / discussion
no class size limit
best suits teens through adults

 

The 'Dark Ages' are known partially through a number of truly impressive objects made from forged iron, Sutton Hoo (Anglo-Saxon) and Oseburg (Norse) being the best known examples. During the Viking Age, iron was used for domestic objects, tools and weapons. Illustrated with artifact images and physical replicas, this session will look at how iron itself was made, the work of the blacksmith, and objects of special interest to re-enactors.
http://www.warehamforge.ca/ENCAMPMENT/artifact.html

Experimental Archaeology for Re-enactors 

 

3:00 - 4:00 PM
60 minutes as lecture / discussion
no class size limit
best suits teens through adults

As you gain skill and experience with Medieval craft works, your personal experience often hits a point where references fail and you think 'Just how did they do that?'. Without realizing, you may have crossed the line into Experimental Archaeology! There are differences to be considered between Experience and Experiment, but surprisingly, adding to formal knowledge can often be the product of fairly simple undertakings. Among case samples are the work the Dark Ages Re-creation Company into Viking Age glass bead making and bloomery iron smelting. 

http://www.darkcompany.ca/beads/index.php

http://www.warehamforge.ca/ironsmelting/index.html 

 

Instructor Bio

 

Darrell Markewitz has operated the Wareham Forge full time since 1992, with experience as an artisan blacksmith spanning 45 years. He is a specialist in the Viking Age, working closely with Parks Canada at L'Anse aux Meadows NHSC, as well as contributing to museum programs in Canada, the USA and the UK. A special effort for the last two decades has been research into bloomery iron smelting, expanded into experimental archaeology and academic papers.
As Sylard of Eagleshaven, his involvement with the SCA extends to the mythic founding of Eoforwic, and he is founder of the Dark Ages Re-creation Company.
http://www.warehamforge.ca/index2.html

 

These are the session descriptions I provided after I had contacted the event organizers back in early December. You can see when you look to the event schedule, I am used to a more formal set of descriptions for session offerings (lost in the web formatting). I am also specifically stressing my real world experience, rather than using SCA personna and accomplishments - especially because of the topic areas.