Coat of Arms & Chain of Office

Coat of Arms 

The arms of the University of Portland are a green shield bearing a silver cross moline and crossed anchors. Beneath the cross and anchors are six wavy bars of silver and blue and on a blue chief an open book with gold clasps. This is an adaptation of the arms of the Congregation of Holy Cross and the city of Portland. The motto is placed on an escroll under the shield and is Veritas vos liberabit (“The truth will set you free”). The supporters flanking the coat of arms are limbs of oak and laurel, symbolic of strength and success.

Chain of Office

The President’s Chain of Office is the symbol of the authority of the President and of the unity a university forges from its diverse communities. There are six medallions in the chain, cast in silver, representing the major constituencies of the University: the State of Oregon, the Alumni, the Students, the Faculty, the Congregation of Holy Cross, and the Board of Regents. Tying these six medallions together is the heptagon in enameled silver displaying the symbol of the City of Roses and Mt. Hood. Rising over Mt. Hood is the Morning Star, symbolic of Mary, Mother of the Word Incarnate, patroness of the University. The heptagon is also representative of the Trivium and the Quadrivium, the curricula of the medieval university. At the bottom of the chain is the Coat of Arms of the University of Portland cast in enameled silver. The connecting links are cast in the shape of roots and branches of the rose.