Lambda Chi Alpha’s Early Coats of Arms
by Mike Raymond • April 2007 • 21 Comments •
Fraternal Engravings
The steel engraving process was used to make unique and beautiful fraternal illustrations from about 1880 to shortly after World War I. There were at least three different, but overlapping, phases in the use of steel engraved plates to make fraternal prints.
Famous Philadelphia Engravers
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was a major center for the engraving business at one time.
It prospered by supporting the book, magazine, and stationary businesses with high quality steel plate engravings.
The two advertisements from old college yearbooks show the influence of Philadelphia engravers on the publications trade a 100 years ago.
Note that E. A. Wright and Dreka were major engraving firms located on Chestnut Street in Philadelphia.
Charles H. Elliott, another major player in the engraving business, was located nearby at Lehigh and 17th Street.
Allegorical Engravings
During the first phase, which lasted from about 1880 to 1890, most fraternity engravings were of the allegorical type. Basically, the allegorical print told a story associated with the ritual or teachings and beliefs of the group.
Fraternities like Beta Theta Pi and Psi Upsilon commissioned a number of them to illustrate books and magazines that they published during this period.
They are rich in detail, and I am sure that they are very meaningful to the members of these fraternities. They are also reminiscent of the tracing boards still used in Freemasonry as a memory and lecture device in their degree work.
To my knowledge, our Fraternity has never commissioned or published an allegorical style engraving.
Badge Engravings
The next phase of fraternal engravings covered a period of time from about 1890 to 1905. The fraternal engravings of this period emphasized illustrations of membership badges embellished with additional decorative features.
A common practice was to festoon the illustrated fraternity badge with a ribbon banner displaying the names of the group’s chapters.
In some cases, like Delta Kappa Epsilon and Beta Theta Pi fraternities, individual chapters would add elements to the badge engraving.
These special elements indicating a founding date, chapter designation, or additional symbols like swords and shields, had some special meaning to the specific chapter.
As in the case of the allegorical style of engraving, I have found no steel engraving of a Lambda Chi Alpha badge with such embellishments.
Coat of Arms and Crest Engravings
The final phase of fraternal engravings took place from about 1905 to shortly after World War I. This phase was characterized by a very conservative approach to representing fraternal organizations.
The engravings from this time focused on coats of arms or crests without any embellishments whatsoever. The coats of arms and crests were rendered with near photographic precision.
While neither as rich in potential meaning as the allegorical engravings, nor as unique and individualized as the earlier badge engravings, these engravings do provide insight into the aims and purposes of the organizations.
Many of the symbols used in these coats of arms are common to various sororities and fraternities. After studying numerous examples of this style of engraving it becomes apparent that fraternities and sororities share a common heritage based on similar ideals.
Lambda Chi Alpha Engravings
While some of these engravings were used to illustrate books and magazines, most were used to illustrate college or university yearbooks.
As a matter of fact, the need for a Lambda Chi Alpha Coat of Arms for a college yearbook was directly responsible for the creation of our first coat of arms in 1912.
The earliest reference to a Lambda Chi Alpha Coat of Arms can be found in a letter from Lewis F. Drury (Massachusetts 1913) dated June 6, 1912:
Another thing the Sophomores were asking about. In our annual yearbook published by the Junior Class each frat has a seal or coat of arms, I don’t know what you call it, but it takes up most of a page and has the pin and motto worked up in a design. We would like to know what arrangements we can make about borrowing the plate or having one made for use in publishing the annual.
Of course, no such engraving plate existed at that time.
Creation of the Gamma Plate
About two months later, Warren A. Cole (Boston 1912) responded to this letter by stating that a standard design for a coat of arms had not yet been designed. Cole recommended that the chapter contact either E. A. Wright or Louis Dreka of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to arrange for a steel engraving plate.
The exact date that Cole created what is now known as the Gamma Plate is unknown. However, it is known that he sent a drawing of the coat of arms to Gamma Zeta on September 10, 1912.
In addition to this fact, we know that Louis Armstrong Webster (Massachusetts 1914) sent Cole a letter indicating that Gamma Zeta had just received a proof of the coat of arms engraving from Charles H. Elliott another Philadelphia engraving company. Webster mentions that the cost of the steel engraving plate was $36.
John E. Mason (Pennsylvania 1913), writing in an early issue of the Purple, Green, and Gold Magazine, relates this familiar story:
The first coat of arms was prepared by Gamma at Massachusetts State where the chapter felt the need of a “fraternity plate” for publication in the Greek letter section of the yearbook. The Gamma “Plate” or coat of arms was based on the first ritual of Lambda Chi Alpha….
In a footnote, Mason also states that from its resemblance to the emblems of Gamma Eta Gamma legal fraternity, we infer that the original suggestion for this plate … came from W. A. Cole.
The original steel engraving plate for the Gamma Plate was long thought lost until it was discovered by a brother a few years ago at an auction.
One example of our rare first coat of arms is on display at our International Headquarters building. Another example of this small treasure is on display in my office.
Creation of the Jack E. Mason - Epsilon Zeta Plate
The life span of the Gamma Plate was very short with only one documented appearance in the Index yearbook. It is possible that the Gamma Plate was used in the 1913 edition of Brown University’s Liber Brunensis yearbook.
At about the same time that the Gamma Plate was being created, the art committee of Epsilon Zeta, headed by Mason, was busy designing the second coat of arms for our fraternity.
Without question, Mason was the principal designer of this coat of arms. He brought a strong background and deep interest in ancient languages, heraldry, and European history to his work.
Two versions of this coat of arms were created by Mason. He was responsible for a sketch of a proposed coat of arms that has seldom been seen outside of old Lambda Chi Alpha publications or our fraternal archive in Indianapolis, Indiana.
This sketch served as the basis for a steel engraving produced by Charles H. Elliott that was used in a Technique yearbook at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a LaVie yearbook at Pennsylvania State College.
This engraving of the coat of arms was quickly replaced by a more refined and accurate coat of arms that remained unchanged until our merger with Theta Kappa Nu Fraternity in 1939.
As can be seen, Mason’s original published version of our coat of arms varies in many respects from the second version of the design that was adopted by our Supreme Council in 1912, and copyrighted by our Fraternity in 1913, as our official coat of arms.
A close examination of Mason’s first version of the coat of arms shows numerous variations from the second version adopted in 1912: the absence of our Latin motto; a slightly different design of the crown, helmet, sword hilts, lamp, and balance; the absence of the illuminating rays; the missing letters on the open book; and, the use of an oversized badge.
A good example of the official 1913 coat of arms, from a steel plate engraved by Elliott, can be found in the 1917 edition of Pennsylvania State College LaVie yearbook.
Another example of the official 1913 design was engraved by E. A. Wright for an unknown college yearbook. This illustration represents a classic embossed print that has been reproduced on tan paper with a yellow ink background for the coat of arms.
Photo Credits in Order of Appearance
- © Photo Courtesy Andrew Eason. Some Rights Reserved.
- © Copyright Lambda Chi Alpha. All Rights Reserved.
- © Copyright Lambda Chi Alpha. All Rights Reserved.
- © Copyright Lambda Chi Alpha. All Rights Reserved.
- © Copyright Lambda Chi Alpha. All Rights Reserved.
- © Copyright Lambda Chi Alpha. All Rights Reserved.
Tom Earp Says:
April 2nd, 2007 at 3:11 pmAh ha, now once again Brother Mike Raymond you bring up a point that has been discussed by many of us that there were 4 Coat of Arms. Is this then the key to the discussion?
Also, do we know who has possesion of the originalo Gamma Plate or is it too lost in the mysterys of LXA? I saw the mention of Gamma Plate and IHQ, but do they really have it?
Nice presentation as usual. History is always interesting as it should be for all of us.
Learning is the best knowledge of not making the same errors of the past or we will repeat it.
Jeff Steele Says:
April 2nd, 2007 at 4:58 pmVery nice job, Mike. Can you inlighten us as to why the old coat of arms shows the initals Delta and Phi on the badge and when and why it was changed to Delta and Pi. When I was in school in the early 60’s we still had some china plates with the old coat of arms on them so the change must have occurred sometime in the 30’s or 40’s. I have surmised that it was related to the merger with TKN.
Any thoughts?
Larry St. George Says:
April 2nd, 2007 at 5:07 pmAround the time that the ‘History of Lambda Chi Alpha’ book came out, I remember hearing a something(from Brother Peyser, most likely)about the original initials being a misspelling that was later corrected from Phi to Pi.
Ed Miller Says:
April 2nd, 2007 at 5:32 pmNo mystery as to the whereabouts of the original Gamma Plate — I’m looking at it now! I bought it several years ago on ebay. I was told that it was among a number of items from the Warren Cole estate that had been first offered to the General Fraternity, but for whatever reason they were uninterested. After purchasing the plate, I got in touch with Simeen Ishaque, an instructor in the art department at Richland College in Dallas, who showed me how to print an engraving. I pulled a small number of prints using the etching press at the college, and have given them to a few of the chapters with which I have been involved in the past. I also gave one to Tom Helmbock, and I believe it is at IHQ in Indianapolis. I have since bought a small press of my own and intend to pull some prints to donate to the Educational Foundation so that they can use them for fund raising. The number of prints will be rather limited due to the nature of the printing process, which is quite time consuming. This is aggravated by the condition of the plate, which has a lot of rust damage. To get the best prints, I have carefully wiped the rust spots with solvent after the normal inking and wiping of the plate. The illustration in this article is from one of the prints that I made — you can see some of the rust spots that I missed in the background, since there is a trade-off between removing the rust spots and preserving the fine detail of the background. I keep the plate oiled to avoid further rust damage.
Mike Raymond Says:
April 2nd, 2007 at 7:22 pmBrother Ed,
I only left your name out of the article to preserve your privacy. I am happy to see that you have shared your great discovery with the Brotherhood.
I very much appreciate your kindness in presenting me with one of the Gamma Plates at last summer’s General Assembly. I still intend to give you something to repay this kindness but I can’t find anything as nice as what you gave me!
So, for now, thanks again.
Yours in ZAX,
Mike Raymond
Ron Michaels Says:
April 2nd, 2007 at 7:43 pmIn the early 1950’s, the Coat of Arms was embroidered and worn on blue blazers at Purdue University and other chapters. It made an elequent statment for the fraternity. Since then, however, finding an embroidered Coat of Arms has been impossible. In fact, it seems to be almost impossible to find anyone who can supply a decal for a car window much less an embroidered jacket patch that is impressive.
Why?
Ron Michaels Says:
April 2nd, 2007 at 7:45 pmIn the early 1950’s, the Coat of Arms was embroidered and worn on blue blazers at Purdue University and other chapters. It made an eloquent statment for the fraternity. Since then, however, finding an embroidered Coat of Arms has been impossible. In fact, it seems to be almost impossible to find anyone who can supply a decal for a car window much less an embroidered jacket patch that is impressive.
Why?
Mike Andreski IX 337 Says:
April 2nd, 2007 at 7:54 pmRon,
1 minute on google will find one…
http://www.bncollegegreek.com/frcrde.html
for a window sticker.
Mike Andreski IX 337 Says:
April 2nd, 2007 at 7:58 pmLambda Chi Alpha coat of arms patches on e-bay, too.
Matt Griffin Says:
April 3rd, 2007 at 2:02 amLarry,
You are correct that there was a misinterpretation by Cole on the initials Delta Phi, which are listed on the brother badge featured on the Gamma Plate.
There is more information in Ritual What and Why and the Phi Manual regarding this topic.
Matt Griffin Says:
April 3rd, 2007 at 2:12 amJeff,
In my research, I would conclude that the change did not have to do with TKN, as that was in 1939, and the Mason Ritual was written and adopted in 1913.
In the Mason ritual, and in his revisions to Cole’s original ritual, the mottoes ZAX, Delta Pi and Lambda Chi Alpha were all scrupulously researched and interpreted. If I remember correctly, in the Cole ritual, there was no meaning given for ZAX and Delta Phi, just the esoteric meaning of Lambda Chi Alpha.
The current COA was produced after the TKN merger, adding “Vir Quisque Vir”, an adaptation of TKN’s motto, “Vir Quisque Vir Est,” which translated means Every Man is a Man. The inescutcheon was also added from the TKN COA.
Russ Vollmer Says:
April 3rd, 2007 at 8:21 amThe Coat of Arms story is interesting. In the late 50s and early 60s, when I was a student and Alpha Theta Zeta brother at F&M and Alpha Theta, as our pledge class gift to the chapter, I hand painted one of those large wooden pledge paddles with the names of all my pledge class brothers in tewo columns overlaying a pair of crossed swords on one side and the Coat of Arms in color on the other on the other. I then varnished the entire paddle and we presented it to our chapter for display in the ritual room with the other gift paddles. Sadly, in subsequent years, it was lost, as was the chapter’s charter and a lot of the chapter’s treasures. But I still remember the days and nights I spent painting the paddle at home during Spring Break that one year.
Ron Michaels Says:
April 4th, 2007 at 11:25 amThe decal is available but the embroidered coat of arms is not. That is, unless you’d like a 15-cent knockoff of the patch badly done that you can find on Ebay. And there is only one of those and it’s marked “Hard to Find.” I would hope so. Thanks for trying. When I asked national, they said that all of the fraternity’s “stuff” was subcontracted to someone else and that the fraternity didn’t do any of it anymore. Understandable. However, it seems that nobody else does it, either.
Tom Earp Says:
April 4th, 2007 at 2:00 pmBrother Miller finding the Gamma plate on ebay had to be a true find and at least it resides in the hands of a fellow Brother. Thank you for having it in your custody.
I am sure it is a treasure to behold as it is such a large part of our history.
As far as Delta Phi to Delta Pi, it is my understanding that it was changed because of the Delta Phi Fraternity which was already in existence from the Union Triad. It was thought with the Delta Phi that to many people would not understand it and would feel it was a connection to them.
As to the Coat of Arms, I too have one on my blazer pocket and have a few that I have picked up and auction them at Founders Day at My Zeta to raise money for the Zeta.
It is funny as at Indianoplis General Assembly one other Brother had a Coat of Arms on our blazers who was my roommate and it was the high light for many other Brothers. They were in awe, LOL!
It is a very classic way to show being a member of Lambda Chi Alpha in a semi formal way.
Maybe one of these days someone will come up with a way to do it and allow more Brothers buy them.
Tom Earp
LX Z 1
Pittsburg State. Un., Kansas
Ron Michaels Says:
April 4th, 2007 at 2:15 pmI’d put the embroidered patch together and get ‘em done but I can’t seem to find anyone who has the actual artwork with PMT colors, etc. As a result, I’d have to take the stuff that’s available (whatever that is) and adlib everything with my artist and then embroider. But I’m sure I’d have to give it up to the present, exclusive licensee of the other LXA “stuff.” If you have artword, or a large coat of arms that can be folded but that has an accurate reproduction of the colors, let me know.
Ron Michaels Says:
April 4th, 2007 at 2:15 pmJust for general info, I’m Psi Zeta 674.
Dan LaTorella Says:
April 19th, 2007 at 6:52 pmActually our Phi here at Pi Zeta gave a fascinating explaination as to why the phi/pi change was made. I am not going to discuss it here but I strongly recommend looking into it because if his explaination is correct it truly was interesting.
in ZAX
Dan LaTorella
Pi 1604
Glen Alan Graham Says:
May 1st, 2007 at 10:06 amOnce again Bro. Mike presents fascinating history about the development of our Brotherhood and its symbols and Ritual! Here he does it with the assistance of a couple of Brothers’ comments. (I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many responses to an article at the C & C Website!)
As an associate back at Epsilon-Gamma Zeta (Idaho) in the early 1970s, I remember clearly being taught that there had been (at least) three coats of arms for L.C.A., the triangular first one (the “Gamma plate”), one similar to our current arms, and the same with the inescuteon from TKN. And now I know (probably also was taught back then during sessions with our High Kappa) that Bro. Jack Mason was responsible for the version that led to our current arms. No surprise there, knowing the interests of Bro. Mason and his keen mind!
I’m very curious about the change to which several commentators refer: a change from Delta Phi to Delta Pi. Since I know very well what the latter two Greek letters stand for, and I cannot see how some other Greek phrase could have “guarded” our entrance; I have to wonder WHAT did the phi in the original stand for?
Brothers, please read my post in “Voices” about the terrific experience I had last Friday (27 April) with Sigma-Beta Zeta!
In ZAX,
Glen ALan Graham
EG 540
Stephen Maloney Says:
May 1st, 2007 at 11:35 pmMike, correct me if I’m wrong, but I do believe you once told us that the meaning of Delta Pi was known by Cole when he was having our first badges made, but he translated it Delta Phi, which is how it ended up on the early badges. Mason later corrected the translation.
The story really is as simple as that. The Delta Phi fraternity story was actually a cover up used to save face with the chapters.
Mike Raymond Says:
May 3rd, 2007 at 12:11 pmBrother Stephen,
Good to hear from you!
Yes, that is my understanding. It appears that Cole was not familiar with the Greek alphabet! He thought the first letter of that word started with Phi. It was pointed out to him later that the word actually started with a Pi. Very quickly Delta Phi became Delta Pi. However, the word and its meaning never changed. It was the same then as it is now….
Yours in ZAX,
Mike Raymond,
Z-U Zeta
Matt Griffin Says:
November 6th, 2007 at 12:23 amBrother Mike:
Check the Phi Manual…the meaning of Delta Phi is different from the current meaning of Delta Pi…
ZAX-
MDG