U.S. Heraldic Registry
Registration of contemporary and historical American heraldry
Wesleyan College
Registration number 20061025D
This certifies that the heraldic arms of the Wesleyan College are registered as an original design and are described by the blazon below
Source
The university's website: http://www.wesleyan.edu/
Design rationale
The Wesleyan shield is a simplified version of a heraldic shield created in the early 1950s for display at the University Club of Chicago. Inspired by the family coat of arms of John Wesley, founder of Methodism and namesake of the University, President Victor L. Butterfield accepted the design as Wesleyan's official coat of arms in 1953. The red shield bears a cross decorated with five scallop shells. Decorated shields were used in medieval warfare to identify knights and their soldiers during the battle. Pilgrims on their way to the Holy Land wore a scallop on their hats, and so this shell entered the heraldry as the symbol for a pilgrimage. Later, the shell came to symbolize anyone who had made long journeys or voyages to foreign countries.
Registered by
Michael Swanson
Categories
Roll of Arms
Policies
