This current Jayhawk is sometimes called the Smiling Jayhawk. When the war ended, the more contentious '41 hawk was abandoned in favor of this friendlier version. Designed by the late great harold D. Sandy, I call it The '46/'05 because it was originally introduced in 1946. Then, in 2005 KU underwent a rebranding effort and the "KU" lettering on the bird was updated to it's current form (the Trajan typeface) but the rest of the bird remained the same. Because it is the current mascot and logo, this is the only version without the year listed on the bottom left. You'll notice that on any apparel or gear, all of the "throwback" Jayhawks are required to list their year. 

The original paintings (which contain real Kansas limestone Rock Chalk mixed into the paint) made history when they sold as a collection for $150K to a couple in Tulsa. In over 30 years I am one of the only artists to be granted licensing by KU, so this artwork is unlike anything else out there.