The Rice academic seal was designed by Pierre de Chaignon la Rose, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, who combined the arms of several families bearing the names of Rice or Houston to signify the cooperation of the city of Houston and the Rice Institute. The shields of some ten Rice armorial bearings were divided by a chevron, and carried three charges, either crows or ravens. The Houston arms were divided by chevrons that bore three birds as charges. Chaignon decided a double chevron for the Rice Institute shield, and owls of Athena to signify wisdom.

The shield of the seal, adopted in 1911, bears the colors of the Institute: "A blue still deeper than the Oxford blue, and the gray of Confederate days warmed into life by a tinge of lavender."

The seal was changed and readopted in 1960 to reflect Rice's academic status to University from Institute.

Original drawings are housed with Rice University Archives; Memorabilia.