Connecticut State University System

The Mace

At the inauguration of Dr. David G. Carter, Sr. as the CSUS chancellor, the new mace and medallion of the Connecticut State University System was unveiled.

The CSUS mace represents the authority that the Board of Trustees invests in the new chancellor, and the medallion signifies his office and responsibilities. Dr. Harriet Applewhite of Southern Connecticut State University, the second longest serving CSU Professor in the System, carried the new mace in its first processional as she led participants in full academic regalia into Welte Hall. At the apex of the ceremony, the mace and medallion were conferred upon Dr. Carter.

The origins of the mace date back more than 12,000 years to its first use as a weapon of combat. For centuries, the club-like mace remained the weapon of choice in battle, but as technology advanced to produce swords and knights took to wearing heavy armor (which the mace could not penetrate), the presence of the mace on the battlefield declined. Eventually, only the personal bodyguard of the King carried the mace in order to protect the royal person. The mace gradually grew more decorative to reflect the wealth of the monarch (and was shortened to about the size of a large pepper mill), and its protective function was abandoned.

The Middle Ages saw the mace solely as a ceremonial staff representing the authority and power of monarchs. Soon after, this ceremonial symbolism was widened to include other persons in authority – mayors, magistrates, church officials, and leaders of universities. The mace's appearance grew more refined and, during the Renaissance, achieved a sophisticated form. Naturally, glamorous woods, precious metals, and opulent jewels were the materials of choice. By the sixteenth century, Oxford University in England is recorded as using the mace in its ceremonial processionals as a sign of academic excellence and independence.

Today, the mace is a worldwide ceremonial symbol for universities and colleges, and the CSUS will follow in this tradition with the introduction of its new mace. The creator of the CSUS mace, Michael Elias, is a graduate of Southern Connecticut State University, Class of 1970, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in art education. Mr. Elias, who later earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from Temple University, has also served as an adjunct art professor at Eastern Connecticut State University for six years.

Mr. Elias carved the 39-inch mace out of Honduran mahogany, taking advantage of the wood's long, straight grain to define the strength and authority invested in the chancellor. He also selected the Honduran mahogany for its rich, deep, regal color to suggest leadership. The flame at the top of the mace symbolizes the torch of knowledge and the Chancellor's commitment to the learning process. Immediately below the flame is a four-sided crest symbolizing the four universities — Central, Eastern, Southern, and Western — that comprise the Connecticut State University System. Below the crest is a circular column with Doric fluting. The fluting was included to reflect the millennia-old, classically Greek underpinnings of modern educational thought. Inlaid in the four-sided crest symbolizing the four institutions is a bronze cast of the CSUS seal.

The CSU System Mace

The Medallion

The new CSUS medallion is suspended from a collar of 20 links with the CSUS Chancellor's seal as the focal point on the medallion. The images on both the seal and the collar's links are representations of CSUS, its four universities, and the State of Connecticut — and their combined mission to provide quality education for the citizens of the state. The CSU System's name and its four institutions traverse the armorial bearing of the State of Connecticut, symbolizing the State's support of public higher education and the CSUS commitment to educational excellence.

The oak leaves at the bottom of the medallion, a device dating back to the state's Colonial era, signify Connecticut's love of freedom. In 1687, King James II attempted to revoke an early charter granting Connecticut an unusual degree of autonomy as one of the American colonies of Great Britain. Legend has it that the King's new governor-general arrived in the colony and tried to seize the charter. Colonists refused to hand it over and, during the ensuing argument, candles in the room mysteriously blew out. In the darkness, the document was spirited away and hidden in an oak tree in Hartford.

The new medallion, a gift from the CSUS Foundation, is a 3.5-inch die struck medal of pure silver with strong three-dimensional highlights and shadings. The first 10 links in the collar are disks that carry the image of the Charter Oak, symbol of the State of Connecticut. The artwork for this coin rendition of the Charter Oak was created by Professor William "Andy" Jones, an Eastern Connecticut State University associate professor of art. The U.S. Mint also has used Mr. Jones' Charter Oak design as the "Connecticut Quarter" for its "50 States Quarter Program."

Of the remaining 10 links on the chain, four have the engraved names of CSUS's chief executive officers to date: Dr. James A. Frost 1972-1985; Dr. Dallas K. Beal 1985-1994; Dr. William J. Cibes, Jr. 1994-2006; and Dr. David G. Carter, Sr. The links with the names of CSUS's chief officers attached to the medallion signify the tradition of authority as it passes from one leader to another. The last six links will remain blank, awaiting future chancellors and their terms of office.

The medallion and its Charter Oak links were produced by the Medallic Art Company of Dayton, Nevada, a premier manufacturer of privately minted coins and medallions. Among its works are Nobel Prize Medallions, the Peabody Medal, the Caldecott Medal, the National Science Medal presented by the President of the United States, and the official inaugural medals of the last 16 U.S. Presidents.

In following the customs of higher education, the mace and its bearer, Dr. Applewhite, led the invested chancellor wearing the medallion out of the auditorium for the first time at the conclusion of the inauguration. The mace and medallion will continue to be used as symbols of the System's chancellors of today and tomorrow in processionals at academic ceremonies.