Date: Tue, 25 May 1999 08:25:04 -0700
From: Elisabeth
Subject: Re: [ATH] AoA: regalia

[...]

Strawberry leaves for Duchy, embattlements for County are standard everywhere. Viscounty coronets are a bit odd in that there is no Known World-wide standard for them; their form varies dramatically from one Kingdom to another. So you can usually tell a County or Duchy rank, but Viscounty is harder unless you know where they are from. When in doubt, bob your head.

The point of regalia, believe it or not, is not to blow off to the world just how many cookies you really have (that would be gauche, discourteous and nouveau riche, wouldn't it), but to make it visibly clear just who you are, so that people can address and interact with you appropriately, right from the start. The aim is to prevent those embarrassing Kodak moments that result from not knowing.

Some rather wise person once said that the mark of a true lady or gentleman is that they never make anyone else uncomfortable by accident. That's the idea.

Elisabeth Black Lion