Assassin insignia

This article is about the Assassin Order's insignia. You may be looking for the Templar Order's insignia.

"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 insignia.

File:AssassinLogo.png

The Assassin insignia

The insignia of the Assassin Order, though varying slightly over different time periods and countries, held essentially the same shape and style. Each of its variations also possibly denoted the various sects of the Order.

History

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.^[1]

During the Renaissance in Italy, it was used on the mechanisms in the many Assassin Tombs, and on the banners and walls of Monteriggioni.^[2] It was also displayed on the banners hung in the Tiber Island headquarters.^[3]

In Constantinople, Assassin Dens and ziplines had a small Assassin insignia atop them, while Bomb-crafting stations were all painted with the Turkish Assassins' personal insignia.^[4]

Possible Origins

Calipers are a tool used in various trades, typically for measurement. "It is used in many fields such as mechanical engineering, metalworking, forestry, woodworking, science and medicine." [Wikipedia, Calipers] Science is closely associated with (See also DiVinci & Ben Franklin) and respected by the Assassins, as opposed to the promotion of superstition and dogma of the Templars.

Also of note is that most Assassin's Guilds use the "Pinched Flesh" just below the calipers. Some sects required severing the ring finger of full members both to demonstrate their commitment and for the special operation of their Assassin's Blade.

Lastly, the letter "A" from the Latin alphabet is widely recognized and easily identifiable and useful for marketing, branding and identifying the Assassin's Creed.

Appearances on Assassins

Additionally, the insignia was worn openly on the armor and clothing of certain known Assassins, such as Mario Auditore,^[2] Ezio Auditore da Firenze,^[2] Nikolai Orelov,^[5] Achilles Davenport, John de la Tour, Ratonhnhaké:ton,^[6] and Saeko Mochizuki.^[7] Certain modern-day Assassins also wore the insignia in the form of a tattoo, such as Daniel Cross^[5] and Kiyoshi Takakura.^[7]

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 bore some resemblance to the symbol of the Freemasons, which was the square and compasses.
Both the original Levantine insignia and the Russian variations were vertically asymmetrical, unlike the most of variations known.
The insignia could be seen on the back of the Seusenhofer armor and the Armor of Brutus.
The coin on the Mongolian Assassin insignia resembled one from the Ming Dynasty of China, which occurred much later than the period from which 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.