Horse and cattle symbol brands

A symbol brand may only be registered in conjunction with a three-piece brand. When registered, it may be used in addition to, or instead of, a three-piece brand.

Brief history

The first symbol brand to be legally registered in Queensland was registered to John Collins and Sons, ´Babiloora´, Mitchell on 31 March 1880, in conjunction with the three-piece brand F1B.

Physical description

In general, a symbol brand may be any free-form shape that does not conflict with, or is similar to, any registered brand. All symbol brands include a dot to the right of, and in line with, the lower part of the symbol.

So as not to restrict the use of the more popular symbol shapes, a table of standard additions has been developed with written descriptions (see following table).

The face depth of a symbol branding iron must not be less than 30 mm or more than 80 mm (face depth refers to the height of the character).

Registering a symbol brand

To legally use a symbol brand in Queensland, a person must submit an application in the same name(s) as the applicant´s three-piece brand to the Registrar of Brands on the appropriate form, Application for Symbol Brand, with the prescribed fee.

As the design of a symbol brand may be any shape, it is helpful if the applicant gives a short description of the symbol brand shape they would like to register.

Note: Symbol brands may be transferred from one three-piece brand to another.

Symbol brand additions and descriptions