escutcheon

Meaning

Noun

• An individual or corporate coat of arms.
• A small shield used to charge a larger one.
• The pattern of distribution of hair upon the pubic mound.
• A marking upon the back of a cow's udder and the space above it (the perineum), formed by the hair growing upward or outward instead of downward. It was once taken as an index of milking qualities.
• The part of a ship's stern where its name is displayed.
• A decorative and/or protective plate or bezel to fill the gap between a switch, pipe, valve, control knob, etc., and the surface from which it protrudes.
• The insignia around a doorknob's exterior hardware or a door lock's cosmetic plate.
• The depression behind the beak of certain bivalves; the ligamental area.

Origin

• From Middle English scochon, from Anglo-Norman escuchon, Old French escusson (French écusson), ultimately from Latin scutum ("shield").