2007 XIV AMC Period Encampment Inspection Report

Inspectors: Sven (New Varangian Guard) & John the Wyrm (Grey Company).

Premise: To inspect the encampments of the 2007 Australian Medieval Conference to rank the encampments on a range of criteria to find the best at conference. The criteria consisted of:

Period to non-period ratio of accommodation (percentage)
Period tents/building accuracy to period meant to be depicted (percentage)
Accoutrements (amount of period accessories measured in broad terminology)
Number of non-period items (a list was made)

Objective: Provide comments and feedback both verbally and in a written report on how to improve the presentation.

Encampment/group and period	Ratio of period to non period	Period accomodation accuracy	Accoutremonts	Number of non-period items	Comments
Green Regiment of the London Trained Bands (Pike and Musket) - 1642 AD	100% Period	100%	Extensive	Rake; white sliced bread; milk in carton, modern tent pegs	Items for commendation: mile marker street signs loo
Uppsala - 8th – 14th century	20% Period	70%	Nil	Lots	Only the two cabins were looked at in any detail in this inspection, one of which had a turf roof.
Various Vikings - Viking (Lynne Simpson etc.)	60% Period	60%	Some	Rope handles on chests, bolts holding Viking tent together	Only one Viking tent with accurate ends
Fire & Steel - 10th century, North west Europe	100% Period	90%	Extensive	Rope handles on chest; non-period shoes; Phillips head screws on bucket; Easter egg	Items for commendation: Gokstad and Oseberg tents Oseberg child chair, bed, lyre Linden wood shield
Ancient Arts Fellowship 740 – 1066 AD	40% Period	70%	Not many	Bell tents with internal frame, etc. etc. etc.	Items for commendation: stripped getald
New Varangian Guard Branches - 9th – 13th century	100% Period	80%	More than some	Modern tent pegs; chest without hinges, hasps or locks	Items for commendation: 256 appliquéd flowers and squiggles on replica of tent from Maciejowski Bible Byzantine wall hangings in Byzantine tent
Sydney Ancients Greek and Romans	100% Period	95%	Extensive	Phillips heads screws in standard; plastic container in tent; modern tent pegs on one tent; screws in shield handles; Allen key screws in brazier	Items for commendation: Defensive field works Tents – Republican Roman, summer campaign Tent pegs on majority of tents based on those from Numenati
Frojel - Viking Gotland	100% Period	65%	Some	Non-period carving on tent poles; Phillips heads screws in standard; plastic container in tent; modern tent pegs on one tent; screws in shield handles; Allen key screws in brazier
Conroi de Bohon	100% Period	75%	Some	Sheep skin on welding glove; no locks or hasp on chests; modern tent pegs; steel sleeve on tent poles; cooking pot; use of fly questionable; rope handles on chest; chest without hinges or closure.	Items for commendation: arms and armour costume
League of Unaligned Re-enactors - 14th century	100% Period	95%	Some	Treated pine tent pole; modern hinges on chest; modern tent pegs; no locks or hasps on hutch chests	Items for commendation: attachment of separate bell tent walls via toggle arrangement

Comments:

We have come a long way since 1985 in regard to historical representations especially in regard to tents, costumes and accoutrements, and this report represents the current endeavours of the groups listed.

John and I walked around the encampments and inspected those with even a modicum of historical representations, thus we had a larger pool of encampments to inspect than the usual few. The period versus plastic ratio was a crude measure used to indicate the percentage of non-period tentage/building present, 7 out of 10 encampments reached the 100% mark. The percentage accuracy to the period depicted was an indication of how well the group had done in their presentation, only the Pike and Musket achieved 100%, and the Sydney Ancients and the League of Unaligned Re-enactors achieved 95%. The number of accoutrements was represented in the use of terminology (extensive to nil), the top three (Pike and Musket, Sydney Ancients and Fire & Steel) all achieved the ‘extensive’ label in this category.

All encampments still showed some non-period items. The most common non-period items included;

modern tent pegs (this needs more research)
rope handles on chests (on pseudo Viking chests)
Phillips heads screw (in buckets, a standard and a shaving horse)
chests without hinges, hasps or locks were also noted but this is a more of a lack of the necessary chest furniture

Some of worst non-period items included;

modern tools
modern food
bell tents with internal metal frames
a design on a bench in texta
treated pine pole of a bell tent
Allen key screws in a brazier

In the comments section we tried to find those items that deserved special commendations and the list is extensive, highlights include;

mile stone, street signs and loo (Pike and Musket)
efforts at period houses, one with a turf roof (Uppsala)
Oseberg tent, chair, bed and lyre (Fire & Steel)
256 appliquéd flowers and squiggles on replica of tent from Maciejowski Bible (NVG – Antioch)
period tent pegs (Sydney Ancients)
the use of detachable tent walls on a 14th century bell tent (League of Unaligned Re-enactors)

With two years until the next conference there is ample time and incentive to remove these flaws in our representations and replaced them with more period items.