Assassin insignia

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"The symbol that you sought and found... It is a mark of courage and honor, yes. But it promises pain and loss as well."

―Oiá:ner, regarding the Assassins' insignia, 1777.

File:AssassinLogo.png

The Assassin insignia

The insignia of the Assassin Order, though varying slightly in design over different time periods and countries, held essentially the same shape and style of an eagle's head. Each of its variations represented the uniqueness of the various sects of the Order, and the insignia was often used to decorate the armor and robes of leading Assassin figures in a number of time periods.

History

The insignia was inspired in ancient Egypt by the former Medjay and Hidden One Bayek, after he dropped an eagle skull necklace which had belonged to his murdered son Khemu in the beach sand at Alexandria, leaving an imprint.

During the High Middle Ages, the insignia was used to mark the entrances of Assassins' bureaus and could be seen on the banners decorating the fortress of Masyaf. During the Renaissance in Italy, it was used on the mechanisms in the many Assassin Tombs and on the banners and walls of Monteriggioni, and was also displayed on the banners hung in the Tiber Island headquarters. In order to hide their intention from the Borgia or other forces that were trying to stop them, Leonardo da Vinci invented a special invisible paint that only the Assassins who were able to use Eagle Vision could detect, even at great distances. The paint was mostly used by Assassin scouts, usually drawing the symbol to mark a target house or item. In Constantinople, Assassin Dens and ziplines had a small Assassin insignia atop them, while bomb-crafting stations were all painted with the Ottoman Assassins' own insignia.

Additionally, the insignia was worn openly on the armor and clothing of certain known Assassins, such as Mario Auditore, Ezio Auditore da Firenze, Nikolai Orelov, Achilles Davenport, John de la Tour, Ratonhnhaké:ton,, Aveline de Grandpré, Saeko Mochizuki and Lo Sparviero. Certain modern-day Assassins also wore the insignia in the form of a tattoo, such as Daniel Cross and Kiyoshi Takakura.

Trivia

• In the Sanctuary, all of the statues had different variations of the Assassin insignia on their waists.
• In Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, Desmond searched for Assassin insignias painted onto the walls in order to guide him to the Colosseum Vault.
• The cape worn during the Carnevale in Assassin's Creed II bore an emblem similar to the Assassin insignia.
• The insignia bears some resemblance to the Freemasons' symbol of the square and compasses.
• The sigils used by the Levantine and Russian Brotherhoods are vertically asymmetrical, unlike most of variations known.
• The insignia could be seen on the back of the Seusenhofer armor and the Armor of Brutus.
• The coin used in the Mongolian Assassins' symbol resembles currency from the Ming dynasty in China, which occurred much later than the period the insignia originated from.
• As the Mentor of the Levantine Assassins, Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad wore a cloak clasp in the shape of the Renaissance Roman Assassins' insignia. His robes were also adorned by multiple symmetrical insignia.
• The outfits of both William Kidd and Alonzo Batilla featured Assassin insignias, however, it is unknown if they possessed knowledge of the Brotherhood.
• Edward Kenway's alternate Jolly Roger for the Jackdaw was a skull encompassed by the Assassin insignia.
• The lifts attached to the main mast of the Aquila had pulley handles shaped like the Assassin's insignia.
• By the Victorian era, the British Brotherhood was quite discreet with their iconography and instead took to signifying their allegiance by the use of a ring.

References

An image gallery is available for Assassin insignia