City Badge, Version 2

Seventeen or eighteen sketches and a mid-render switch in direction later...here's the latest update. This is getting closer to the goal I set out when beginning this project, which was to tell the story of the city of Pittsburgh at a glance through heraldic imagery--without straight up co-opting the current coat of arms (entirely too predictable an approach). The outer shield shape is inspired by the insignia/patch of my former Army Reserve unit (which itself is based on the arms of Pittsburgh), the 99th RRC, headquartered just outside the city in Coraopolis. The pall reversed (upside down "Y") splits the badge into three sections (while itself evoking Pittsburgh's famed three rivers--that was rather convenient). Each section of the badge identifies a different piece of Pittsburgh lore: the sledgehammers symbolizing the main thing Pittsburgh's known for: steel industry; the bridges symbolizing Pittsburgh's many bridges (the idea coming from the identical Sixth, Seventh, and Ninth Street bridges on the North Shore); the third Fort Pitt, from which the city was built out and eventually got its name...with a little soccer ball for good measure. (Extra references attached.)

Working blazon: "Or, a pall reversed sable between two sledgehammers per saltire in first, three bridges fesswise in second all sable, and in base a star fort sable charged with a soccer ball argent and sable." (Still working on the keyline part...bear with me. :D)