Hermes Reborn in the New Millennium

In the early days of the School of Business Administration, there was a growing need to define the School’s identity on campus and foster community among its students. Utter domination of intramural sports by business school teams was becoming somewhat stale, and so the business students decided to host a convivial gathering, in the form of a banquet. The schools of Law and Engineering had held such gatherings, and naturally the business students of the day felt it was their duty to outdo these “other” schools on campus.

Here’s how C. Aubrey Smith, alumnus (BBA 21 and MBA 26) and longtime accounting faculty member, describes the event’s significance:

This banquet set the stage for comparable banquets until the early 1940s and was notable for several reasons, three of which were:

1. It tended to develop a feeling of solidarity and oneness among students.
2. It gave the student body an opportunity to blow off steam, even going so far as to burlesque members of the faculty.
3. It was the occasion for bringing into existence the patron saint of the School of Business Administration, Hermes.

And so it was at the first such gathering in 1922 that Hermes was introduced to great acclaim, as the “patron saint,” or mascot, of the Business School. Intended to rival the Law School’s Peregrinus and Engineering’s Alec, students choose Hermes for his ancient association with skill in negotiation and commerce.

Why Hermes? Hermes, or Mercury as the Romans later knew him, was the Greek god of commerce, language and measurement, and the protector of merchants and travelers. He is associated with alchemy, including the ability to turn lead into gold. Lightfooted and lighthearted, Hermes was also ingenious, a clever inventor and a shrewd negotiator. As the swift messenger of the gods, Hermes is famed for crossing boundaries and enabling communication and cross-cultural understanding.

At his unveiling, a Daily Texan writer noted that “the fame of Hermes as a god of commerce was derived from his diplomatic skill in social intercourse, and from his efficiency in the capacity of messenger.” Reassuringly, the author adds that “An eagle at his feet gives evidence to the fact that he is one hundred percent American, in spite of his ancient origin.” He concluded that “Hermes will always be considered in the School of Business Administration as a symbol of success and efficiency in business enterprise.”

The Hermes statue itself, finished in 1931, is carved from wood and finished to resemble bronze. Peter Mansbendel, whose work also adorns the Main Building, was the artist. Today, the statue of Hermes resides on the second floor of the McCombs School as the centerpiece of a display honoring some of our most generous alumni and friends (see Hermes Society).

In the Greek pantheon of deities, gods represented certain elemental qualities or personified human behavior: Zeus/Jupiter (lightning, the sky, rule and order), Ares/Mars (earth and war), Aphrodite/Venus (love and passion), Athena/Minerva (wisdom and learning). Unlike most deities of the ancient world, Hermes represented a remarkably wide and complex range of attributes and may therefore be considered the most recognizably “human” of all the Greek gods.

Recently, the traditions of Hermes at McCombs were rediscovered and reinterpreted. Beginning in 2003, incoming students receive t-shirts bearing the Hermes logo. And instead of a banquet (who goes to “banquets” anyway?), Hermes will host an annual “Spring Fling” in the Atrium for students, faculty and staff.