Personalized Graduation Plaque – Antique Brass Academic Shield

The Plaque

An academic shield, shaped the way a crest is shaped, with a banner across the head carrying the class year and the school's initial standing large at the center. The graduate's name runs beneath it, then the degree, then the institution, each on its own line, raised in brass against a brushed bronze ground.

Built to look like something awarded rather than something ordered.

Craftsmanship

Electroformed metal over a sculpted shield, finished in antique brass, so the banner keeps its fold and the edge of the shield stays crisp instead of rounding off. The relief is not one flat step. The banner, the initial and the lines of text are each cut at their own height, somewhere between 2 and 5 mm, which is what stops the shield reading like a stencil and gives it the modeling of a struck medal. The plaque is 8 to 10 mm thick and solid all the way through, so it has a weight in the hand that a diploma frame does not.

Personalization

Four things appear on the finished plaque: the class year, the graduate's name, the degree and the school. Enter the year, the name and the degree in the personalization box at checkout. Reply to your order confirmation with the school name, and with a crest or logo file if you want one sculpted in place of the plain initial; there is no extra charge for it.

Send the degree written the way the school writes it. Bachelor of Arts, not BA, unless BA is what you want standing in metal for the next fifty years. A design preview comes back by email before anything is made.

Built to last

Sealed under a UV-protective finish once the patina is applied. It holds its color in direct sun, so a study window or a bright office wall is not a problem.

Specifications

• Material: electroformed metal over a solid sculpted core
• Finish: raised warm brass on a smooth brushed antique-bronze ground
• Thickness: 0.3 to 0.4 in (8 to 10 mm), solid through
• Relief: raised detail stands 0.1 to 0.2 in (2 to 5 mm) proud of the ground, at more than one height across the design
• Shape: crest-style academic shield
• Sizes: eleven, from 6 x 4 to 10 x 10 inches, height x width
• Uploaded crest or logo included at no extra cost
• UV-protected and weather-treated
• Made to order in our own workshop

A detailed university crest needs 8 x 8 or larger to hold its internal detail. A plain initial reads cleanly at every size.

Mounting

Three ways, chosen at checkout.

• Keyhole slots: two screws in the wall and it lifts on and off.
• Peel-and-stick tape: sealed strips already applied to the back. No drilling, which suits a dorm or a rented office.
• Floating stud mount: threaded studs on reinforced bosses that stand it clear of the wall and throw a shadow under the shield.

Hardware and instructions are included with all three.

Where it works

A study wall, a home office, above a desk. Parents hang it where visitors will see it. Graduates hang it where they will.

Gifting

Almost always bought by someone other than the graduate, and usually ordered before the ceremony so it can be handed over on the day. It also works years later, for the doctorate that took nine years and never got marked properly.

Care

Wipe clean. Avoid harsh cleaners.