Seeblatt: A stylized water-lily leaf, drawn as a heart pierced by a trefoil.
Materials: Sculpey clay, MoldMax silicone, R98 Pewter, tools
East Kingdom Elevation of Matthias von Würzburg to Order of the Pelican, April 17, 2021
"Whatever practicality would dictate." -Matthias von Würzburg
When you find out someone dear to you is going to be recognized, you may have a lot of feelings about this: joy, elation, need to help in absolutely any way possible, especially when it is one so deserving of the honor of joining the East Kingdom Order of the Pelican.
I've known Matthias for decades at this point, and time has brought us from friends to family. I consider him my brother by heart. Though usually not the name that comes up first, he is a major part of why I joined the SCA, as well. I spent much time with him during my first event asking questions about EVERYTHING, which he had a knowledgeable answer for, and never once did he make me feel less than for not knowing - that is so important for anyone, but especially a newcomer. Matthias has never been one to step out into the spotlight, but has worked tirelessly behind the scenes to make magic happen. During the insanity of 2020, this was never more evident... and it was not-so-behind-the-scenes.
Being who he is to me, of course I offered whatever he needed that I could do for his elevation. That came to be custom tokens to hand out to those who attend (in person, virtually, etc) as a thank you from him. We discussed his vision for what that would look like, and I added my input to increase wearability, and the project began! I provided Matthias with two sculpt options: one simple, one scalloped. Scalloped won!
As my process goes, I used Sculpey firm clay to sculpt, hardened it, then took hand-tools and my trusty Dremel to get the definition I wanted. I created a two-part mold using MoldMax60 so I could make as many as we need, then cast both sculpts in pewter for him to choose.
What he didn't know was that I also created a very special sculpt incorporating the rampant bear and seeblatt from his arms. I wanted him to have something extra-special to hand out to those he felt impacted his journey the most. What I didn't know until afterwards, was that what I sculpted is almost an exact replica of his recently submitted badge! The symbolism I based this on is that the bear is holding the seeblatt. The seeblatt is a heart. The way I see it, Matthias, the bear, gives his heart to that which he loves, and in turn, this token is a part of my heart that I can give to him.
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