The state seal of Colorado is based on the Territorial Seal of Colorado, with the title and date changed. It features symbols of God, government, and Colorado’s mountains and mining industry, with the state motto “Nil Sine Numine.” The design was created by Lewis Leyward Weld and Governor William Gilpin, who studied medieval heraldry. The seal was approved by the Colorado legislature in 1877.
The state seal of Colorado is a modification of the Territorial Seal of Colorado, adopted by the First Territorial Assembly on November 6, 1861. The state seal replaced the title “State of Colorado” for the territorial name and the new date of “1876” for that of November 6, 1861. Otherwise, the state seal remains in detail and symbols the same as the former Colorado territorial seal. The date stamped on the state seal is 1876, the year Colorado joined the Union. The seal was not approved by the Colorado legislature until March 15, 1877.
Lewis Leyward Weld, the territorial secretary appointed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1861, was primarily responsible for the design of the territorial seal that became the basis of the state seal of Colorado. Governor William Gilpin is also believed to have played a role in the creation of the Territorial Seal of Colorado, as the design contains symbols from each man’s family crest. Both men were also known to have studied the art and symbolism of medieval heraldry which plays a role in seal design.
In the outer circle of the seal, the upper half contains the legend “State of Colorado.” The bottom half is inscribed with the date 1876, the year Colorado was admitted to the Union. The date is flanked by three blue stars on each side, completing the circle.
At the top of the circular seal is the eye of God within a triangle. It symbolizes the presence of God, who sees all, in all things. Golden rays shoot around the eye in an arc. Below the triangle are the Roman fasces, which consist of a bundle of elm and birch rods and a battle-axe tied together by straps. A Roman fasces is the emblem of a republican form of government.
On the state seal of Colorado, the shafts are tied to the ax with straps of red, white, and blue, signifying the colors of the American flag. The rods tied together mean the power of the state in its unity with other states. The ax is a symbol of strength, leadership and authority. On the bands of the straps a parchment is engraved with the phrase “Union and Constitution”.
Beneath the scroll is a shield showing on its upper half three snow-covered mountains against a red background. Colorado is a mountainous state, home to the immense Rocky Mountains. A crossed pick and ax on a gold ground, insignia of Colorado’s important mining trade, are shown in the lower half of the shield. In a semi-circle below the shield on the Colorado state seal is the state motto, “Nil Sine Numine,” a Latin phrase that translates to “nothing without divinity.”
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