PRINCIPLES AND POLICIES
26 August 1993

The Gilded Pearl is an Chartered guild of the Society for Creative Anachronism. These Principles and Policies do not represent nor delineate Society policy and shall not be construed to be against its By-Laws or Corpora.

I. The purpose of The Gilded Pearl (the "Guild") is the aligned study of the Renaissance period (c. 1450-1650) (the "Period") throughout the known world for the enrichment of its members and the benefit of The Society for Creative Anachronism (the "Society"). The scope of the Period shall in no way support or promote the erosion of the Society's ending period. The intention is to have the Guild's study be complete and fairly represented. The Period study shall include all countries, races of people, religions, civilizations and developing countries, in all aspects, including, but not limited to, costume, brewing, culinary arts, philosophy, politics, language, sciences, history, armoring, martial arts, calligraphy, music, etc. The purpose of the Guild, as above written, shall be upheld beyond any personal agenda so that the Guild shall remain viable and valuable to its members and the Society.

II. Save the Requirements for Membership and these Principles and Policies, no person shall be discouraged from membership in the Guild because of persona, status within the Society, sex, age, religion, race, national origin or sexual preference. Each membership shall be for a duration of one year. All applications for membership into the Guild should be addressed to the Guild Mistress/Master.

III. The Guild shall be comprised of:

A. Members ("Guild Member"), shall be those who have fulfilled the Requirements for Membership and have kept the Principles and Policies, as written. Guild Members shall select the Guild Master/Mistress and Guild Board as described in D and E below;

B. Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses, shall be Guild Members whose duties include the orchestration of Guild Chapter Meetings, as defined below, so that the Guild Chapter Meetings are made available at local events. There shall be one (1) Deputy Guild Master/Mistress per region. The region of each Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses shall be determined by the Guild Board. The Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses shall be communicator of information to Guild Members within his or her region and to potential Guild Members or Society members who request information regarding the Guild. The Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses shall be elected by the Guild Board or the Guild Mistress/Master, upon the approval of the Guild Board, and each term shall not be more than two years from selection.

C. Guild Officers, shall be Guild Members who shall be responsible for the recording of projects, subscription fees, memberships and the production of information to Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses. The Guild Officer shall be selected by the Guild Board and the Guild Master/Mistress. The term of the Guild Officers shall not be for more than two years from selection.

D. Guild Board, Six (6) Guild Members ("Board Members") whose responsibilities shall include the making, enforcing and amending of the Principles and Policies; review of "Requirement for Membership"; planning for the hosting of the yearly event; approving of projects pending presentation; selection of Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses, Guild Officers and shall review Guild Master/Mistress candidates. The Board members shall be selected by the Guild members by a simple majority vote at the Guild Meetings, as defined below. The Guild Board shall advise the Guild Master/Mistress regarding structure and the work of the Guild for the benefit of the Guild. Each Board Member's term shall not be for more than two years from selection.

E. Guild Master/Mistress, a Guild Member, selected for candidacy by the prior incumbent Guild Master/Mistress, Guild Board or any member who petitions the current Guild Master/Mistress or Guild Board of a candidate. The Guild Master/Mistress shall be selected by simple majority vote as described in VII below. The Guild Master/Mistress shall have the responsibility of oversight of the Guild, and who shall have ultimate responsibility for the Guild and its Guild Members, Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses, Guild Officers that they might be served and receive value from participation in the Guild and that the purpose of the Guild is realized. The Guild Master[Mistress shall have the power to select candidate Board members, officers and Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses. The Guild Master/Mistress shall select Guild Master/Mistress candidates so that the their position is succeeded by a responsible Guild Member whose commitment is to further the work of the Guild. The Guild Master/Mistress term shall be for no more than two years at which time, at their option, they shall become Advisory Board Members as acknowledgment of their service and in further support of the Guild. It is the responsibility of the Guild Master/Mistress to report on a quarterly basis to the Kingdom Minister of Arts and Sciences and to file the financial reports of the Guild.

F. Advisory Guild Board ("Advisory Board Member"), former Guild Masters/Mistresses, who, by their commitment and self-selection shall advise the Board Members and the Guild Master/Mistress that the Guild may benefit by his or her experience and support. The Advisory Board's powers shall only be in an advisory capacity and shall not have any power over the Guild Board or the Guild Master/Mistress to make ultimate decisions for the Guild. Each member of Advisory Board shall not be held to the commitments of the Guild members and may create their own participation within the Guild and may participate at will.

IV. Each Guild Member shall be responsible for producing a minimum of two (2) projects per year. The subject matter of these projects is the sole discretion of each Guild Member. All projects shall be within the Period and shall include, but are not limited to, those listed in I above. Given the nature of some projects in their complexity, it may be necessary for one or more Guild Members to act in concert in production of a particular project. If this is the case, all members responsible for these projects shall share equally its presentation at Guild Chapter meetings, as defined below and shall share in the responsibility of its production. In consideration of the nature and required time of their duties, Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses, Officers and Board Members shall be responsible for producing a minimum of one (1) project per year. The Guild shall recognize their contribution to its purpose and viability as a project in itself. In order to fairly represent a written research project, it is requested that a member have no less than three (3) sources in their bibliography. In the recreation of an art form or science, it is requested that the project is indicated as either a re-creation of an original source or a work which is creatively inspired from an original work.

V. In order that the Guild may have its purpose realized and promote the arts and sciences of the Period, Guild Chapter Meetings ("Chapter Meeting') shall be held at local Society events, pending prior approval of the Autocrat of such event, at which Guild Members will display and discuss projects as they are completed or are in progress. The Chapter Meetings shall be held by Guild Members who attend a particular local or kingdom event at which the Chapter Meetings shall be announced or posted by the herald. Chapter Meetings may be attended by both Guild members and non-Guild members. Each meeting shall be set up in a presentation-informative format. Time should be allowed at each Chapter Meeting for questions and answers and to allow participation within the Guild. Guild Members wishing to display or present projects shall contact the Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses of that region before each such event and should be cleared with the Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses before the Chapter Guild Meeting that each project is displayed and discussed in an orderly manner and to allow adequate time for each such project. Chapter Meetings shall, from time to time, have guest lecturers and/or teachers who may present certain subjects which are of interest to Guild Members and which fall within the Period of the Guild. All such persons and their subject matters shall be cleared with the Guild Mistress/Master before any such presentations or lectures.

VI. All Guild Members are requested to be available to meet as a body at quarterly meetings ("Guild Meetings"). The site of the Guild Meetings, which will be determined by the Guild Board, will usually be held at a local or kingdom event with the prior permission of the Autocrat. The Guild Meetings will detail the business of the Guild, hosting of events, presentation workshops, selection of Guild Master/Mistress, Guild Officers, Board Members, etc. and information which is pertinent to being part of the Guild. Guild Members will be notified of the Guild Meetings by notice in the Guild newsletter, by a Deputy Guild Master/Mistress. Given the importance of such meetings and the importance of our camaraderie, missing two consecutive meetings, without sufficient cause, will be viewed by the Guild Board as an indication of a lack of interest in Guild affairs and may be requested by the Guild Board or Guild Master/Mistress to furnish a letter of intent regarding their participation with the Guild.

VII. All members holding an office in the Guild must be members of the Society. Selections and candidacies for all positions will be held at the Guild Meetings six (6) months before the end of each position. A Guild Member may petition to the Guild Board or the Guild Master/Mistress person(s) whom they think would make excellent candidates for any open position. All candidates for each position available will be listed in the Guild newsletter prior to the Guild Meeting at which the vote will be held. The Guild Master/Mistress and Guild Board seats shall be selected by a simple majority vote. These votes may be cast in person or by proxy. The proxy vote must be a signed and dated letter authorizing the proxy to cast the vote. A vote may also be cast by absentee ballot by mailing such ballot to the Guild Board or the current Guild Master/Mistress. Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses, Guild Officers, Board Members and the Guild Master/Mistress must responsibly turn over their position to their successor(s) by advising them and providing any information for orderly succession. This insures that the Guild is minimally interrupted due to the changing of its officers. Notification of the changing of all officers shall be submitted to the Kingdom Minister of Arts and Sciences.

VIII. All Guild Members are requested to participate in the hosting, as a body, one (1) event a year. Given that Guilds, under the present Corpora, cannot hold events, they may host an event sponsored, by permission, by any canton, barony, etc. A Guild Member wishing to have the yearly event in their area should first contact the Guild Master/Mistress to let them know of their intention that it might be voted on by all Guild Members. The Guild Member must also contact the seneschal of such local group to seek sponsorship of such event. This responsibility entails the attending, the setting up, demonstration of arts and sciences, martial arts, etc. The subject matter of this event shall be determined by the Guild Members which shall include, but not be limited to, all aspects of our study. For example, the Guild Members may determine that at the yearly event it wishes to display the Italian Renaissance (c. 1458), then all members would portray any country or the arts of that period or any country which had influence in Italy during that period or they may portray the view of the world during that particular period. The year of portrayal and the site at which this event shall take place shall be determined by the Guild Members by a simple majority vote at the Guild Meetings.

IX. Members shall be encouraged to subscribe to the Guild's newsletter. The newsletter is the means by which members may be kept abreast of the business of the Guild, elections, events, notices of Chapter Meetings, quarterly Guild Meetings and billboard communications regarding items of interest to members. Given the purpose of the Guild in publishing research articles and information produced by its members, all such articles received for publication for the Guild newsletter shall be accepted from Guild Members only. Non-members may subscribe to the Guild newsletter but shall not be allowed to publish articles within it. The reasonable cost of the newsletter shall be set by the Guild Mistress/Master and the Guild Board and shall be set to cover costs of mailings, forms, etc.

X. The Guild Board, from time to time, shall conduct training sessions and presentation workshops ("Training Sessions") during the Guild Meetings on presentation of projects. The purpose of these Training Sessions is to properly evaluate and present projects and that the Guild and its members are responsibly represented to encourage participation in the Guild and not to dissuade any person(s) through pedantic methods or to stultify their participation and to further engage the Guild in the process of its research. It is not the purpose of the Guild to be "authorities" of the 15th-16th Century arts and sciences but rather "inquirers" into these arts and sciences through research and demonstration. In the presentation of work, it is requested that each Guild Member simply state their area of research or project and where they discovered it as a researcher and inquirer. Dogmatic and pedagogic methods will not only be discouraged but not tolerated for they do not inspire further research. All persons shall be acknowledged for what they discover and it shall be acknowledged that they have made the discoveries individually.

XI. Although the Guild supports the structural, philosophical study of politics of its Period, the Guild shall forever remain non-political and shall not have any political influence within the Society. The Guild supports education through research and the demonstration of arts and sciences and respects all honors and awards which are bestowed upon such excellence.

XII. Although the Guild cannot request that Guild members socialize outside the Guild and the Society, it is imperative that Guild Members maintain a certain amount of respect and decorum for their fellow Guild Members. We have a common purpose in our endeavors and there are none superior to others. Guild members should not bring undue disrespect upon the Guild due to not making themselves available to Guild Members or Society members who might inquire about their work or project or who might request information regarding the Guild. All Guild Members are encouraged to give input to the Deputy Guild Masters/Mistresses, Board members or Guild Master/Mistress in order to support the Guild. If any Guild Member has any altercation or dispute with the Guild or any of its members, it is the responsibility of the Guild member to communicate this to the person or persons with whom they have this dispute. All Guild Members must be willing to rectify this dispute to encourage participation within the Guild. If a Guild Member's dispute or altercation is not resolved after completing the foregoing, he or she shall then go the to Guild Board or Guild Master/Mistress whose job is to have the Guild Member's dispute resolved for the benefit of the Guild. If none of the above gives satisfaction to any person(s), then that person may refer to the Corpora for solving grievances.

XIII. Given the importance of the common ground and dedication of the Guild's work, it is strongly requested that Guild members acknowledge their relationship and affinity with other Guild members and refrain from gossiping, complaining or placing their personal agenda above the purpose of the Guild. Gossiping strips bare the morale of the Guild, complaining hinders the Guild from achieving any satisfaction in its endeavors and the grandstanding or the placing of one's personal agenda above the Guild's purpose creates dissension among its members and impedes the Guild from its purpose. As stated above, all Guild members have the responsibility of communicating responsibly to those who can assist them in any area that needs addressing without resorting to any of the above behavior. Guild members who are in repeated violation of the foregoing will be requested to appear before the Guild Board and Guild Master/Mistress.

XIV. All written research projects shall remain the property of the person who produced such works and shall not be reproduced or published without the express written permission of such person. All written material produced by the Guild, i.e., the Requirements for Membership, Application, these Principles and Policies, etc., shall remain the property of the Guild and shall not be reproduced or published without the express written permission of the Guild. Any work within the Period that is published, produced or displayed by any member under the auspices of the Guild should state that the work is "written [or produced] by _____________ , under the auspices of The Gilded Pearl." This insures that the Guild and the producer are fully acknowledged for their contribution.