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[Foldnil]

The US Marines have a famous globe, anchor, and eagle image.
They state this is their trademark, so using that image wihout their consent is illegal.
It is my belief that the image is subject to copyright, not trademark.
(it looks to me like a work of art, not a logo)
And, since it created and published prior to 1923, it is the public domain if it's a copyright.
If its important, this image does not have any text (Marine Corps, etc) in it.
I would appreciate opinions on if the image I speak of is actually a trademark or copyright.
Thanks!

[JSonnabend]

How (and more importantly, why) are you differentiating between a "work of art" and a "logo"?  Can't something be both?

Also, just because something is protected as a trademark does not mean all uses are "illegal" without the trademark owner's consent.

- Jeff

[Foldnil]

Hi,

Sorry for the late reply. The forums were down for an extended period.
It seems to me that the USMC is saying the design is a trademark because if it was a copyright it would have entered the public domain. They appear to be using semantics to protect their rights to the image long after they would have normally disappeared if it was strictly a copyright.

What would stop a descendent of Van Gogh to say that Starry Night is their company trademark and not (or in addition to) a copyrightable image, therefore that artwork is not part of the public domain despite it being 100+ years old?

Thanks

[artchain]

A work of art could certainly be protected as a trademark if it met the requirements:  that is, the work is used in commerce to identify the source of goods or services.

But trademark protections are not the same as copyright protections, so establishing the artwork as a trademark might not (for example) prevent distribution of copies.

[JSonnabend]

A work of art could certainly be protected as a trademark if it met the requirements:  that is, the work is used in commerce to identify the source of goods or services.

But trademark protections are not the same as copyright protections, so establishing the artwork as a trademark might not (for example) prevent distribution of copies.

Exactly.

- Jeff