IMO It’s a long Z with an angular C on the right end. The O,D, I, and A missing are represented by the 4 dots in the middle. It’s that simple. Just another symbol to represent his name. It also is a play off of the constellation of Scorpio. But the hint that 4 dots represent letters might even point to something deeper about Zodiac such as the number of letters in his real name.
Leaving dots to represent the number of missing or indecipherable symbols/letters is commonly used in Epigraphic texts.
Unfortunately all of the Google book resources that explain this better are not available to link, so here’s one text about how dots are used to replace unknown symbols/letters. It’s not my favorite link, but it’s one at least. Epigraphy is important in deciphering unknown symbols and also deeming works as forgeries or originals. In fact many elements of referencing and deciphering unknown symbols in Z’s cipher letters could possibly be left up to Epigraphologists.
http://www.worldcat.org/wcpa/servlet/or … m=49679798
Info on Epigraphy
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epigraphy
From a purely aesthetic angle of what this new symbol might have represented:
The symbol looks like a 3d scorpion with the four dots representing feet (draw lines from dots to the Z/line or even eachother and it makes little legs how bout that!) and the C representing the claws of the scorpion IMO. The Halloween card falls under the sign of Scorpio. If one looks at the constellation of Scorpio its a long angular line with a near Z shape at the left end to represent the tail. There are two points at its right end to represent the claws.
However, the importance is in noting that the symbol is likely his signature like the Z and crosshairs symbol. He made the symbol up – embellishing upon epigraphical as well as astronomical /astrological references to make them personal. It was clearly created by Z to represent Z and Z alone. I am not counting out the idea he was fimiliar with runes being an influence. Runes play a role in Epigraphy and I do believe he was aware of them and enjoyed reading/studying ancient script in general (hence why he would know about Epigraphy dots). Perhaps He was aware that his own symbols would leave much for epigraphologists to ponder over years later. It seems as if he succeeded in doing so.
Possible interest: Also note that beneath the line of the exclamation point that is covered from the word Halloween by the Skeletons foot there is still the dot. The dot indicates it represents the rest of a missing symbol covered by the foot. At least 4 letters are touched by the skeletons arms and 4 letters covered by his legs NOT counting exclamation mark bc it is a symbol not a letter. There are 4 large eyes near the skeleton which could be incidental or point to he importance of the 4 dots on his new symbol. Also "4-teen" emphasizes the number 4. Again the 4 dots on the symbol represent the lost/hidden characters remaining as O, D, I, A.
One theme of the card is lost/hidden things, whether they be the skeleton hiding behind the pumpkin, the symbol hiding behind the skeletons foot, the eyes hinting someone is hidden behind something, the loss of the pumpkin, the loss of the eyes. So is the case in Epigraphy when representing "lost" or "hidden" symbols/letters with dots. The 2 dots on the eyes of the skeleton and in his pelvis (4 in all) also point to the importance of 4 dots in his letter. The eyes of course are no longer in the skeleton, but what is left behind where his eyes once were are "dots". Eyeballs riddle the page to remind us what the dots on the skeletons eyes symbolize and that there is a character for each one of the 4 dots in the new signature.
The significance of 4 dots might also point to how many letters are in Zodiac’s actual name as the main theme of the letter was figuring out Zodiac’s first name. Ie) Fred, Ross, etc.
I hope to better streamline this theory, but for now this is it.
I’ve pondered on this damn taunting symbol for ages and I still cannot make sense of it. The damn thing has kept me awake at night! Like many people I have had many theories over the years:
1) It is looking down an old steel "V" gun sight against a target that shows error corrections. (Zodiac was suggesting to Avery that he was refining his aim.)
2) Just a cartoon caricature showing an angry, scowling face.
3) A stylized mountain landscape intended to represent a specific location.
4) Something to do with a map… a set of streets, or a street… or a building… or a bridge (Golden Gate?)
5) A cattle brand (possibly intended to suggest an occupation or location or was just a red herring).
6) Semaphore with morse or some other coding.
7) A stylized marines corp symbol intended to depict a key. Was Zodiac in the marine corp or navy? The other bit looks like a sword turned into a walking stick. Was Zodiac a slightly disabled ex-marine?
8) It is a stylized representation of a marine corp symbol with 1 stripe on one side and 2 on the other. Had Zodiac been in the marines and been demoted?
9) The symbol is a key to solving one of the ciphers… how could it be used as such? No idea.
10) If superimposed on a Zodiac watch face it reveals a time or it relates to a horoscope symbol or number or something, somehow…
11) Some kind of horoscope thingy?
12) A suggestion of an American Indian motif?
13) A star constellation. Why? Why indeed!
I’m sure there were more. In the end I have always ended up with a splitting headache. The damn thing could mean anything.
Rather than edit my previous reply I thought it may be best if I start a new one.
A friend of mine recently provided a simple explanation for this symbol. 
My friend says this symbol is nothing more than a stylized V for Vallejo. The slash to the left of the V is thicker at the top and goes to a point gradually. So it is knife-shaped so represents a knife. The two slashes on the right hand side of the symbol indicate that two people were stabbed "by knife" away from Vallejo. The two slashes going down represent the two victims who "went down". One slash is longer than the other, indicating that one of the victims survived but was still down (i.e. seriously injured and traumatized). The other slash is much shorter indicating that this victim’s life was cut short. The four dots simply represent the fact that four people had been killed "by gun" by the time the card was sent. Or they could represent the positions of the stab wounds on the victims.
Postscript: My friend adds that the slash on the left side could simply represent the fact that a knife had been used. But it could also indicate that someone else had been stabbed on their own in the past, somewhere away from Vallejo. Considering that Lake Berryessa is north of Vallejo and the two slashes are shown on the right of the V symbol, this could suggest that the downward slash on the left side of the symbol may indicate a possible victim who "went down" to the south of Vallejo. Are there any unsolved stabbings from that area?
No one to date has ever come up with a really good explanation to what it means. And no clear match to any symbol has ever come up.
I belive Z was into the occult, and influenced by mythical writing.
The symbol could be a Norse Rune:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oM5q8iXrmxk/V … es%2B5.jpg
The symbol on the Bates letters looks alot like theban script:
http://www.fromoldbooks.org/Various-Occ … 1×1700.jpg
But the dots, not clear on those.
Another possibility is a Voodoo connection the Process Church was in to Voodoo in New Orleans in 1968 some more here. viewtopic.php?f=37&t=2569&p=41048#p41048
It is a logical assumption that the Zodiac left symbols like this one as a "clue". But in the case of the Zodiac the clues are so cryptic, obscure and vague that they could mean any number of things. This is what leads me to believe personally that the symbolism is nothing more than elaborate myth-making on the part of the Zodiac.
Whoever the Zodiac was, he was intelligent enough to realize that symbolism is at the root of all mythology. If you want to create a myth about something or someone, all you need is the right blend of symbolism and the myth will create itself in the minds of people. The Zodiac also exploited the media because he knew it would help to bolster the mythology.
It is for these reasons that I believe the symbolism actually means nothing at all. It is all just designed to help people "connect the dots" of symbols in their minds so that they construct a myth of "the Zodiac".
The Zodiac wanted legendary status and, like the Egyptian rulers of old, he wanted to seem god-like even in death. He wanted people to become slaves to both himself and his mythology. He wanted his symbolism to endure. His symbolism reflects and holds all that is mysterious but has no logical solution.
Question: If we de-construct or de-mythologize the Zodiac what do we find?
Answer: A rather pathetic and mentally sick individual who felt alienated by the world around him.
Without the multi-faceted and ubiquitous symbolism he is no longer "the Zodiac". He is in fact just a man, and a very pathetic one at that.
In my opinion, to find the Zodiac, we need to be looking not at the symbolism directly, but looking for someone who was intelligent and obsessed by mythology and symbolism. The Zodiac would have been someone who not only liked these things, but he would have lived out his mythological fantasies as a part of his life. His Zodiac persona was probably something he kept to himself, but I have little doubt that he would have been totally absorbed by subjects such as mythology, myth-making, propaganda, and symbolism.
Another possibility is a Voodoo connection the Process Church was in to Voodoo in New Orleans in 1968 some more here. viewtopic.php?f=37&t=2569&p=41048#p41048
There’s a lot of the Halloween card in his paintings the Wicken Moon has a unfinished Zodiac symbol in the middle and a skeleton in the upper right corner and the large eye like the eye hole in the tree and the Primoridial Eye the eyes of course. http://zodiackiller.com/HalloweenCard.html http://victorwild.com/Fine_Art_Paintings.php
It is a logical assumption that the Zodiac left symbols like this one as a "clue".
Yes, I agree with that – to an extent. But in this particular case it presupposes that Zodiac actually produced the Halloween Card. I’m not sure that he did. There are weighty reasons – in my opinion – to doubt it.
That’s one thing.
As for your general take on it, I’m not sure I agree 100%. I don’t think he was necessarily obsessed with symbols or mythology. My impression has been – almost from the start – that Z was someone who picked up elements (the moniker, his symbol, the ciphers, the executioner outfit, the methods, the very "persona" itself) from sources he was familiar with: Literature, comic books, movies, popular culture…you name it.
His use of these sources was – for lack of a better term – puerile. There’s something immature about the way he goes about it, like a teenager trying his best to impersonate some sort of super fiend. Electric gun sight. Impracticable bomb schematics. Look at me, I’m a clever villain and you’ll never catch me! That aspect of it is noticeable – for me, at least. And it doesn’t indicate someone who was genuinely interested in anything as involved as mythology, or symbolism, or astrology (for that matter). He just used these elements superficially.
I see him as someone who could have easily picked up both his ciphers and his bomb schematics from a comic book. A loner, an awkward loner who found a way to assert himself – to become someone important – through terrorizing his surroundings. A kid, basically. Not literally – but in the way he went about his grim business.
Anyway – another tangent. I don’t dismiss your take on it – I just don’t buy it completely.
I completely agree with you Norse.
“…they may be dealing with one or more ersatz Zodiacs–other psychotics eager to get into the act, or perhaps even other murderers eager to lay their crimes at the real Zodiac’s doorstep.“ L.A. Times, 1969
When learning to fly "lift" is one of the first lessons taught, one of the next thing you learn are the natural enemy’s of aeroplanes, gravity, and of course protruding land masses. Maybe the symbol has something to do with the Diablo twin peaks potentially overlaying it.. just thinking out loud.. I can not recall if I or anyone else posted this before.
another map
this will give you direction of "north east" 15 knots wind
A while back, I saw a YouTube video where someone had enlarged that strange Halloween card symbol and overlaid it upon the ciphered letters, and by moving it from place to place, was able to line it up so it revealed all of the BY GUN, BY KNIFE, etc. words from the Halloween card. I’ll be darned if I can find it again though. Has anyone seen this, and do you have any comments about its veracity or plausibility?
I don’t know the name of the guy but, if it’s what I’m thinking of, it was being called something like "overlay theory". That’s all I remember. There is talk about it here somewhere.
Soze
I don’t know the name of the guy but, if it’s what I’m thinking of, it was being called something like "overlay theory". That’s all I remember. There is talk about it here somewhere.
Soze
Randall Clemons
