Chrome Hearts Logos and Symbols Explained: Horseshoe, Cross, Dagger, Fleur and Scroll

Chrome Hearts has never published an official meaning for its logo or symbols, so any single "meaning" you read online is interpretation. What is documented is the set of motifs the brand uses and, in several cases, has registered as trademarks: the horseshoe logo (a cross inside a horseshoe-shaped band carrying the brand name), the CH Cross, the CH Plus, the Cemetery Cross Patch and an ornamented dagger. Around those sit fleur-de-lis shapes, floral and scroll ornament, and a blackletter wordmark. Together they draw on motorcycle, Gothic and rock imagery.

This guide separates three things: what the brand and public records actually say, what each motif borrows from, and the readings fans and collectors give it. Where we describe a reading rather than a fact, we say so.

Once Legos is an independent NYC reseller of pre-owned Chrome Hearts. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by or authorized by Chrome Hearts, and the names below come from public sources and from how the pieces are described when they are bought and sold.

What Chrome Hearts has and has not said about meaning

Founder Richard Stark has long resisted explaining the work. Complaining in 2018 that the press is always asking why, he told Hypebeast, "We just do shit, you know?" He has also pushed back on the biker label that attaches to the symbols. "We're not about Hell's Angels. We're not a biker company," he told the Chicago Tribune in 1992, even though he and John Bowman started by making their own motorcycle jackets. The roots are real, but the brand does not define itself by them. For the full background, see our Chrome Hearts history.

Where the brand is explicit is in court. According to The Fashion Law's 2023 report on its suit against Shein, Chrome Hearts says it uses its cross designs as source identifiers, meaning symbols that tell shoppers a product comes from Chrome Hearts. Hypebeast's 2026 report on its suit against Nordstrom adds that the company is not claiming exclusive rights to all cross imagery, only its federal registrations for the CH Cross and CH Plus. That is the nearest thing to an official glossary, which is why the names below are the ones to trust.

The main Chrome Hearts symbols at a glance

• Horseshoe logo: a horseshoe-shaped band with the name in blackletter and a stylized cross at the center. Embroidered or printed on hoodies, tees and hats.
• CH Cross: the signature cross with arms that flare into pointed, fleur-like tips. Pendants, rings, hardware and leather patches.
• CH Plus: a second cross design that the brand registers separately. Smaller studs and hardware.
• Cemetery Cross: named "Cemetery Cross Patch" in a 2023 complaint. Patches, rings and apparel graphics.
• Dagger: an ornamented dagger used as hardware. Zipper pulls, pendants and rings.
• Fleur: the fleur-de-lis shape. Knee patches, link bracelets and the tips of crosses.
• Floral cross: an ornate cross filled with fleur-like ends and engraved detail. Pendants, rings and cuffs.
• Scroll: ornamental scrollwork, and the "scroll logo" name used for the blackletter label.

The horseshoe logo

The horseshoe is the brand's best-known emblem on clothing. Trademark records describe it as a horseshoe design with the words Chrome Hearts inside the horseshoe and a stylized cross within it. Hypebae's 2020 report on a lawsuit over a Fashion Nova top described a horseshoe graphic with a Celtic cross in the middle that the retailer had swapped for a rose. You will see it on hoodies and zip-ups, pocket tees and hats.

Horseshoes are traditionally treated as lucky or protective charms, and the link to a motorcycle brand is easy to draw. But we found no source quoting Chrome Hearts on why the horseshoe was chosen, so treat luck and protection as a common reading, not a stated meaning.

The CH Cross, CH Plus and Cemetery Cross

CH Cross

This is the cross most people mean when they say the Chrome Hearts cross: arms that widen into three-pointed tips, often with a small domed center. The Fashion Law called it a "Celtic-inspired" cross in 2020 and noted that Chrome Hearts says it began using the mark in the late 1980s. It is the shape behind the leather patches on denim, covered in our guide to cross patch jeans, and behind the silver pendants.

CH Plus

The CH Plus is a separate registered cross design, named alongside the CH Cross in Hypebeast's 2026 coverage. It appears on smaller details, for example the stud on a small leather wallet. If a listing says "plus," it usually refers to this shape.

Cemetery Cross

"Cemetery Cross Patch" is the name used for one of the brand's registered cross designs in the 2023 Shein complaint, and the name also appears on rings and apparel. Vogue described a Cemetery Cross ring in 2010 as a big, tough piece in 22-karat gold or silver with a diamond center. Chrome Hearts has not said where the name comes from. A common explanation online, that the shape echoes grave crosses, is unconfirmed.

The dagger

The ornamented dagger is used mostly as hardware. Complex noted in 2020 that silver dagger hardware had appeared on custom Air Jordan 1s and Rolex watches, Hypebeast described sterling silver dagger zippers on a 2025 collection made with Drake's NOCTA line, and Bloomberg Law reported the dagger among the designs named in the 2023 Shein suit. Daggers generally read as danger or protection, which suits the brand's look, but that is interpretation. Our dagger jewelry guide covers the pendants, rings and earrings in detail.

Fleur, floral cross and scroll

Fleur

The fleur-de-lis is a stylized lily with a long history in European heraldry, closely associated with the French monarchy and, in religious art, with purity. Chrome Hearts uses the shape in several ways: fleur-shaped leather patches on the knees of pants and jeans, repeating fleur links on bracelets, and the fleur-like tips of its crosses. Whether it is meant to carry any of those older associations is not something the brand has said.

Floral cross

The floral cross is a more ornate version of the cross, with fleur-like ends and engraved scrollwork filling the arms. It is made in sterling silver and in 22k gold, and you will find it on pendants, rings and cuffs. Our necklaces and pendants include several floral cross designs.

Scroll

"Scroll" covers two things. In jewelry and embroidery it means ornamental scrollwork, the curling, engraved-looking patterns you can see running down the sleeves of the hoodie at the top of this page. On clothing, "scroll logo" is the name listings use for pieces carrying the blackletter Chrome Hearts label, often set vertically on a pocket or sleeve. We found no published name for the typeface, so we describe it only as Old English-style blackletter, which is how Hypebae refers to it; other outlets say gothic lettering.

Is Chrome Hearts religious, or satanic?

People ask this often, because crosses and daggers can read very differently to different wearers. We found no statement from Chrome Hearts describing its symbols as either religious or anti-religious. What is documented points elsewhere: the brand's own filings treat the crosses as trademarks that identify it, and its founder says he does not explain the designs. The visual language, crosses, fleur-de-lis and blackletter, comes from medieval and Gothic ornament, which is also why the pieces read as religious to some people. Wearers bring their own meaning; the brand has not assigned one.

Why the names matter when you buy, sell or authenticate

Using the right names makes searching and selling faster. Listings, including ours, use terms such as CH Cross, Cemetery Cross, floral cross and scroll logo, and a search that names the motif and the item type finds the piece faster than a general description. If you are selling, send clear photos through Sell To Us and mention what the piece carries.

It also helps with authentication, since the symbols are among the most copied parts of the brand. Knowing what a genuine cross or dagger should look like, with crisp edges and clean arm tips, makes weak casting easier to spot; our guide to how to tell if Chrome Hearts jewelry is real covers stamps, weight and finish. To compare motifs on real pieces, book a private visit at our NYC Showroom. Every piece we list is in hand in New York, authenticated and graded Brand New, Excellent, Great, Good or Fair.

The bottom line

The motifs are well defined, with names the brand itself uses in court. The meanings are not. Treat the horseshoe, crosses, dagger and fleur as a consistent Gothic, rock and motorcycle design vocabulary rather than a coded message, and be cautious about any source that quotes the founder explaining one without saying where and when he said it.