The Tasmanian Council of Education was established in 1859 to hold university entrance examinations ‘in imitation of the Oxford and Cambridge annual local examinations’. The TCE awarded scholarships for higher school education, an Associate of Arts award (equivalent to matriculation) and two annual scholarships for study at a British university. Its elaborate seal, bearing an open book, a star and a rose, was designed by Bishop of Tasmania F.R. Nixon. When the University of Tasmania was established in 1890 it took over the functions of the TCE