Thursday word of the day : escutcheon

escutcheon \ih-SKUHCH-uhn\, noun:

1. a shield decorated with a coat of arms
2. the protective metal plate around a keyhole and lock, drawer handle or pull, light switch, etc.
3. the panel on a ship's stern bearing her name

by 1480, from Old North French escuchon, variant of Old French escusson, from Latin scutum "shield"

from dictionary.reference.com