Meridian Arts and Sciences

Research and Documentation in the SCA

Mistress Sindokht Bayat al-Herati

• Why Do Research?

There are many reasons why people in the SCA decide to do their own research.

(1) Perhaps there is no one in your area that teaches the skill and therefore you must learn it on your own.

(2) Perhaps someone has told you or taught you something and you want to see for yourself if the information is correct or you need to go further than your teacher's interest or knowledge level.

(3) Maybe you are interested in a topic about which there is very little information readily available from teachers in this kingdom.

(4) Finally, you may be interested in an area in which little to no research has been done by anyone in your kingdom or the SCA in general.

All of the above are reasons why an individual decides to begin doing their own research and no longer relies on the research of others. Relying on other's research is not a bad thing. There are many people who never find themselves in one of the above positions and have a perfectly enjoyable time playing in the SCA without doing their own research.

• Research Techniques

The first place to start is your local public library. There you will find the dreaded card catalogue. All libraries use a different computerized card catalogue, but the following techniques will work with all of them.

These catalogues allow you to search by different methods all of the holdings of the library. Author and title searches are fairly self-explanatory; you are searching for things by the author or a particular work by title. The two searches that will be of the most use are subject and keyword. The subject search allows you to search the holdings by the subjects they are categorized under according to the library of congress. This can be tricky, as often you will find that the computer has no titles under the subject you listed and yet the books are indeed in the library. A subject search will not give you as many “hits” as a keyword search. Therefore, I always recommend that you begin your search with a keyword search. The computer will search the holdings by the keyword that you put in. If the responses that you get are way too excessive, anything over 500, then limit your search by adding another keyword or a date or by going to a subject search. However, sometimes you just have to wade through the whole lot!

Once you have found a book of interest to you scan the table of contents and the index to see if there is information on what you are looking for. It is a fallacy that you must read the entire book in order to have done research. Only read the section(s) pertinent to what you need to know. Only occasionally have I found a book that I wanted to read cover to cover. If it looks like the book will be useful, set it aside and go to the next one. Once you have a good stack, retreat to a table in a quiet spot and begin reading. If you run out of time, write down the titles, authors and call numbers of the books you didn't have time to read or check out the lot and take them home with you.

Make the reference librarians your friend! They are the ones who will do an interlibrary loan request or ILL. These requests are time consuming on their part and often the library requires a fee from you in order to do one. As a public library is not a high order research library, they generally under-staff the reference department and the librarians are often skeptical of ILL requests. Once the request has been made, the librarians have no control over how long it takes or any restrictions that the lending library might place on the loaned material. So be patient and polite and chocolate chip cookies never hurt! While this is their job, they can make this process impossible or pleasant and helpful. And once the librarians see that you are reasonable, patient and polite; they will often go well out of their way to find things for you. ILL will allow you to get books, articles, etc from places all across the United States and vastly increases your ability to do good research.

Ah, the Internet! Many of us now have access to do research on the Internet. Even if we don't have access at home, most public libraries have access available to the general public. Doing research on the Internet primarily involves the use of search engines. Search engines use similar methods as a library catalogue so a subject or keyword search is most useful. Try rearranging the sequence of the keyword phrase for different results. My favorite search engine is www.dogpile.com that compiles the top results from most of the other search engines and displays them all at once for you. Then you can continue viewing results on one particular search engine and return to Dogpile when you are done.

Once you are on the Internet, you will find all kinds of information. Just remember, that no one screens what is placed out there. The information could be great or not so great depending on the knowledge of the poster. Be careful what you use and always try to find out their sources if you intend to do anything serious with this information or they give you information contrary to what you have already found.

• Keeping Your Records

The first problem that most people run into is what to do when you've found the perfect book, but it is out-of-print and you can't find a copy to purchase for yourself. How much of it can you copy? According to what I have read, and I make no claims to be an expert, you are allowed to make one complete copy of an out-of-print book for personal research purposes. This does not mean you can go out and copy a book that you like just because it's price is out of your budget. If it is possible to purchase the book, then that is what you must do!! Also once a book has reached a certain age, it becomes public domain. However, most of the sources you will be searching for won't be public domain. There was a wonderful article done for Tournaments Illuminated in issues numbered 129 and 130 on copyright questions for those doing research in the SCA, please read it!!

The next thing you need to do is to create a filing system and place for the information that you find. Even if you only need one file and you tuck it in with your books on the bookshelf – do it! Don't let your research stay in your memory, because it will fade and then you will have to do it all over again. This system doesn't have to be elaborate, but make sure that you get the following information from each source: Title, author, publisher, copyright date, place published, ISBN number, issue, volume and web address. I generally make copies of the title page, front and back of all books and this goes with whatever specifics I take from the book, notes or copies of pages or photos. This is paper-clipped or stapled together and then filed. That way two years from now when that new lord or lady asks you where you found your information, you can answer them!

• Documentation for A&S Entries

Most A&S entries require you to explain to the judges what you have created and why you did it the way you did and used the materials you chose to. Then you want to provide the judges with a list of your sources. Here is where that filing system comes in handy! You always want to use sources that are closest to your period. In other words if you have to chose from a great book written last year or one written in 1429 about your topic – go with the one from 1429. The amount of information needed for any one entry varies, but in general you don't want to overwhelm your judges. After all they are judging. They don't have time to read a 30-page research paper (unless of course you are entering a research paper). Illuminations or photos are great for giving them the idea without a lot of reading. However, if you know going into the competition that few judges are knowledgeable about your craft, then you will need to have enough information to educate your judges as well as inform them.

The amount of documentation required for an entry varies also depending on what level of competition you are entering. Is this a local event A&S? Usually the event A&S Officer can let you know what to expect and it is always a good idea to call and ask rather than assuming and getting it wrong. A Regional A&S will want documentation according to Kingdom A&S rules. If you have never entered before, call the Faircrat and ask about requirements or ask someone who has entered in that category before. Do your homework! Don't just show up and assume they'll let you enter your great piece with a 3x5 card that says, “It's period”. Kingdom A&S is by far the strictest, and your documentation will definitely affect the score that you receive.

Spend some time presenting your documentation in a pleasant easy to follow format. Type and proof your documentation and if you have more than one page; put it into a folder or binder. I recommend using page protectors, you never know when the event will be rained out or your best friend will spill water on it. Look at your entry on the table. Present it in the best light, as if you were setting the dinning room table for Christmas dinner. What will make your documentation and entry shine? Do you need some little extra touch? Do it! Don't forget this final step to your entry. After all, you've put all this effort into the project, why fall short at the finish line?

Research and documentation is not everyone's cup of tea, but it is not that difficult, just time consuming. However, this isn't a race. You have years to learn what you want to learn and don't forget to start with good teachers, if possible. There is no sense in recreating the wheel! If Mistress So and So is an expert, seek her out. Ask questions or for a source to start with. That is the job of the Laurels to help people learn about the arts and sciences. Set a time and place to talk with the person and come prepared to learn. Don't expect them to stop their work in the kitchen or to hold class in the middle of court or feast. Be patient and ask questions.

Good Luck In Your Studies!

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