Konstantia Kaloethina

Baroness (Nobilissima) Konstantia Kaloethina

Call me Konstantia. (pronounced Kon-stan-tee-ah) formerly known as Constantia Kaloethes

Persona:

• 6th century Byzantine minor noblewoman
• Born in 526, Daughter of ennobled silk merchants who died in the plague of Justinian (c. 541-542), Konstantia serves as a lady-in-waiting to Aelia Sophia, the wife of Justin, the nephew to the Emperor Justinian. Born a few days after the end of the Nika riots, she is a daughter of revolution and yet of faith, as the completion of Hagia Sophia was also in the same year. Educated under the reforms of Empress Theodora, Konstantia speaks Greek and Latin. She is a patroness of the arts and a patroness of a small home for orphans and widows.
• Interests lie in Byzantine life, jewellery, and culture; glass and metalwork; illumination; music; heraldry (vocal and devices, in addition to administrative), paternosters; religious life; iconography.
• [Armorial]

History in the SCA:

Timeline:

• Started in the SCA in 2007-2008
• AoA from Martino III and Ariel III (William the Marshal)
• Torse from Ostwald I and Kaye I (Valor)
• Swan from Ashir and Maerwynn II (Queen's Prize)
• Cross from Donngal III and Catalina (Crown Tournament)
• Herald Extraordinary given under the auspices of Takauji Gold Falcon in the court of Matsu and Elena (Crown Tournament) (Title registered as Greek Fire Herald Extraordinary)
• Order of the Pilgrim's Badge from Baron Soren Atte Raven and Baroness Ruadhan de Wich (Unslung Heroes)
• Mark of Merit from Baron Soren Atte Raven and Baroness Ruadhan de Wich (Tournament of Horse & Falcons)
• Court Barony from Damien II and Issabell II (Crown Tournament)

[Order of Precedence Link]

Groups and Affiliations:

Current Group: Barony of Forgotten Sea, green cord from Vatavia (2011) Past Groups: Crown Lands (modernly Maryville, MO) Other Affiliations: Proteged to [Master Gabriel Kjotvason, OP]; apprenticed to Mistress Bess Darnley OL, OP.

Offices

Regional Offices:

• Harrier Herald (Central Reporting Deputy for the kingdom of Calontir) - 2008 - 2010

Kingdom Offices:

• Kestrel Herald (Publications) - 2010 - 2011
• Purple Falcon/Purple Quill Herald (Emergency Deputy to Gold Falcon/Assistant to Gold Falcon) - March 2012 - March 2014
• Gold Falcon Principal Herald - March 2014 - March 2016

Items completed under Principal Herald tenure:

• Online reporting form, along with the Lord Giovanni Loredan, and the Calontir Webministry Team
• Revised Heralds' Handbook, along with Mistress Sofya la Rus
• Heraldic Retreat, along with Mistress Dorcas Whitecap
• Submissions Tracking Software, along with Lady Alexandra Vasquez de Granada and The Honourable Lady Brigida von München

Other service: Administrator for the unofficial Calontir Facebook group (since 2007), Nobelese Largesse (founder, organizer, facilitator from 2010 to 2014); facebook group [[1]], 2016 Calontir Heralds' Retreat Organizer, A&S Champion for Barony of Forgotten Sea (2017 - present), Barony of Forgotten Sea Roll of Arms Project (2015 - present)

Classes Taught

• Easy-Peasy English Country Dance
• Making Byzantine Wire-work Jewellery (blog entries for supplies here and instructions here)
• Prayer beads, paternosters, and Islamic prayer beads
• Budgeting Time and Avoiding Burnout, taught with Mistress Kayleigh Mac Whyte at KWHSS 2013
• Client Care at the Consult Table, KWHSS 2014
• Volunteer Management in the SCA, KWHSS 2014
• Making Weather-Resistant Heraldic Banners, Calontir Heralds' Retreat 2015
• Court Heraldry Masterclass, Calontir Heralds' Retreat 2015
• Dressing the Vestal Virgin, Clothier's Seminar 2016, Calontir
• Teaching Classes in the SCA, taught with The Honourable Lord Cathus the Curious, Bellewode Symposium 2016
• I've Submitted, Now What?: SCA Heraldic Submissions 101, Calontir Heralds' Retreat 2016
• Court Heraldry Roundtable, taught with Mistress Dorcas Whitecap, Lord Saito Takauji, and Tiarna Diarmaid O Briain, Calontir Heralds' Retreat 2016
• Behind the Curtain: What Does Gold Falcon Actually Do?, taught with Mistress Dorcas Whitecap and Lord Saito Takauji, Calontir Heralds' Retreat 2016
• What the Bling?: an overview of awards and regalia, Chieftains 2017, Calontir
• Juzu, or Japanese Prayer Beads, Clothier’s Seminar 2017, Calontir
• So You Want to Be a Principal Herald, taught with Master Ryan Mac Whyte, Master Cormac Mor, and Master Kameshima Zentarou *Umakai, KWHSS 2017, Meridies
• What The Bling?!: regalia, court comportment, and award recommendations, Valor 2018

Other Information

• My SCA blog is located here: [[2]]
• My scribal scribbles can be found here: [[3]]
• My etsy shop is here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/belletoile
• Documentation for past projects:
  • 6th c Byzantine Bone Box
  • Intaglio
  • Dressing the Vestal Virgin
  • Painting Heraldic Banners
  • Romano-British Glass Headed-Pins
  • Calontir Rabbulas: Illumination
  • A Monk's Life: Paternosters and Appendix
  • Gallo-Roman Necklace and Appendix
  • Byzantine Court Clothing Appendix

Rat out a Friend

12 July 2014 - "TRM Ariel and Martino called me into court. And then proceeded to talk about Nobelese Largesse and the impact it made on the Society. And in thanks, I received largesse of new garb. And it's so very, very, very spiff." https://www.facebook.com/constantiak/posts/10152274209067569