
Vassar Seal and Cartouche on UT’s Main Building, images from The UT History Corner – https://jimnicar.com/2017/01/26/the-main-building-seals/
I. Builders: This production of the seal of the Vassar College was fashioned by the Atlantic
Terra Cotta Company, under the supervision of architect Paul Cret (Nicar). The Atlantic
Terra Cotta Company was a major producer of architectural terra cotta, responsible for
the creation of the terra cotta used by forty percent of New York City’s terra cotta
buildings (“Atlantic”). The company was established in 1908 and thrived up through the
1920s, growing to be the largest producer of architectural terra cotta in the world in the
first quarter of the 20th century (“Atlantic”). The combination of the great depression and
improvements in other fields of construction technology–stressing “economy and utility”
and favoring more modern materials like glass and steel–lead the eventual closure of the
Atlantic Terra Cotta Company in 1943 (“Atlantic”). Amusingly, the reproduction of the
various University seals displayed on the UT main building was specifically outsourced
away from Texas, due to Faculty Building Committee Chair Dr. William Battle’s belief
that Texas artists “do not know even the first principles of the art” of “heraldic designs”
(Nicar).
II. Date of Creation: The seal was produced in the winter of 1932-1933 (Nicar).
III. Location on Campus: The seal is located on the east side of the UT main building. It is
the first University seal from the left when facing this side of the UT main building.
IV. Reason for and Time of Creation: The seal of Vassar College was installed on the UT main building in early March in the year 1933 (Nicar). The seals of different universities
were installed along the sides of the building at the suggestion of Dr. William Battle, the
chair of the Faculty Building Committee (Nicar). Vassar College was not one of the
universities originally selected to be represented, but was later added to replace the
University of Prague when University Comptroller John Calhoun suggested that some
representation of women in higher education be added, and Vassar College (at the time an
all-women’s institution) was chosen (“About”, Nicar).
V. Type of Artwork: The Vassar College seal, like many of the university seals, was
reproduced as an oval terra cotta cartouche, with color added via oil-based paint (Nicar).
VI. Description of the Artwork: The goddess Athena is depicted prominently in the seal. She is sculpted sitting down, using her left hand to balance a book on her right thigh as she holds an olive branch with her right hand. The front of the Parthenon, a major temple to Athena in Athens, can be seen over her left shoulder in the distance (“Parthenon”). The
majority of the seal is the natural greyish-brown of terra cotta, with the exceptions being
the dark grey border, the rose sky above Athena, and the dark grey cloud-like coloring
above her right shoulder.
The primary symbolic significance of Athena in this seal is as a personification of
wisdom and education. Viewing Athena as a symbol of wisdom and development is a
consistent interpretation throughout much of modern history, from the middle ages when
she was “represented as the defender of wisdom and virtue” to the enlightenment where
she was viewed as a “patron for the arts” and a representation of wisdom and reasoning to twentieth century research, where she was thought to represent “clear insight, rational
thinking and wisdom” (Deacy).
Athena’s role as a goddess of wisdom and patron of learning can be traced back to her
mythological origins. She was the child of Zeus, the king of the Olympian gods, and the
titan Metis, who was described as “wiser than any other god, or any mortal man”, a
lineage that implies great knowledge and intelligence (Hesiod, Theogony, line 892 in
Anthology of Classical Myth: Primary Sources in Translation). After learning from his
grandmother Gaia that Metis would have a son who would overthrow him, Zeus ate
Metis, leading to Athena emerging from Zeus’ head (Apollodorus, Library, 1.3.1- 1.4.1
in Anthology of Classical Myth: Primary Sources in Translation). This tale only added to
Athena’s association with wisdom, with Athena’s birth from Zeus’ head being interpreted
by some more religious individuals as “the emergence of arts and inventions from the
brain of God” (Deacy).
The olive branch that Athena holds serves as a symbol of Athena’s role as a patron of
civilization and refinement. It is a reference to the story of her contest with Poseidon for
sponsorship of the city of Athens. In this myth, both Athena and Posiedon wished to gain
the city of Athens as a place of worship (Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca, 3.14.1 from
Theoi.com). Poseidon produced a new sea for the city (or, in other accounts, offered them
horses) while Athena created the first olive tree, and Athena was judged to have won the
city (Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca, 3.14.1 from Theoi.com). This story was
interpreted even by Ancient Greeks as symbolic of Athena teaching mankind the
“domestication and planting of olive trees”, a clear example of her taming this once
“wild” tree into something that could be cultivated to great societal gain (Diodorus of
Sicily, Historical Library, 5,73 in Anthology of Classical Myth: Primary Sources in
Translation). This origin is most certainly why Vassar College refers to her olive branch
as “the symbol of civilization” (Governance).
Thus, the prominent position of Athena in the seal of Vassar College associates the
institution with her wisdom and sponsorship of learning. To remove any doubt that this
was the intention of Vassar College, the by-laws of Vassar College itself state that the seal
displays Athena as “patron of learning” (Governance). Additionally, as Vassar college
originated as an all-female university and Athena was a notably female personification of
wisdom, she may have also symbolized an ideal and precedent for scholarly women at
Vassar College, though that is not discussed in the by-laws (“About”, Deacy).
VII. Bibliography
“About – History: Vassar College..” About | Vassar College. Accessed March 27, 2025.
http://www.vassar.edu/about/.
“Atlantic Terra Cotta Company Records.” Txarchives.org. Accessed March 27, 2025.
https://txarchives.org/utaaa/finding_aids/00038.xml.
“Athene Myths 1.” ATHENA MYTHS 1 GENERAL – Greek Mythology. Accessed March 27,
2025. https://www.theoi.com/Olympios/AthenaMyths.html#Athens.
Deacy, Susan, and Alexandra Villing. “Athena past and present: an introduction.” In Athena in the Classical World, pp. 1-25. Brill, 2001.
“Metis.” METIS – Greek Titan Goddess of Wise Counsel. Accessed March 27, 2025.
https://www.theoi.com/Titan/TitanisMetis.html.
Jim Nicar. “The Main Building Seals.” The UT History Corner, May 31, 2024.
https://jimnicar.com/2017/01/26/the-main-building-seals/.
“Parthenon.” Encyclopædia Britannica, February 10, 2025.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Parthenon.
Petrauskas, Sally. “Vassar Seal Symbolizes Ideals of The College.” Vassar Miscellany News. December 11, 1964.
The Governance of Vassar College. Vassar College, 2024.
Trzaskoma, Stephen M. Anthology of Classical Myth: Primary Sources in Translation.
Translations by Stephen M. Trzaskoma, R. Scott Smith, and Stephen Brunet. 2nd ed.
Indianapolis/Cambridge, IN: Hackett Publishing Company, 2016.
“Vassar College Seal.” Vassar Encyclopedia. Accessed March 27, 2025.
https://vcencyclopedia.vassar.edu/collections-and-curiosities/vassar-college-seal/.
Written by William Bolduc