Secretary Clough receives ceremonial key from Chief Justice John Roberts, Chancellor of the Smithsonian
The Honorable John G. Roberts presided over the ceremony and presented Secretary Clough with a ceremonial brass key that once opened the massive oak doors of the Smithsonian Castle.
The Smithsonian's Badge of Office was conceived of and fabricated at the same time as the mace. It is a thick, irregularly-shaped medallion made of 18-carat gold which hangs from a cherry-red ribbon. Cast in high relief and set within a recessed square is the owl of Athena, a symbol of wisdom, and and olive branch, a symbol of peace and goodwill.
The Smithsonian Mace was commissioned in 1964 by the Institution in anticipation of the bicentennial of James Smithson's birth. The Mace was unveiled Sept. 17, 1965, as a gift from friends of the Smithsonian. Constructed of gold and silver and encrusted with diamonds, rubies and polished Smithsonite, the mace is imbued with symbolism of the Institution and its founder.
The tradition of passing the Smithsonian key to the incoming secretary originated from the 1964 induction of S. Dillon Ripley as the eighth Secretary of the Smithsonian. In lieu of administering an oath of office, outgoing secretary Leonard Carmichael proposed a key passing ceremony based on those frequently used in the inauguration of university presidents. The key was presented to Ripley by Chief Justice Earl Warren, then Chancellor of the Smithsonian. The large brass key dates to the mid-nineteenth century and opened one of the massive oak doors of the Smithsonian.
