Great Seal of America

The official written description from which all representations of the Great Seal are derived is as follows:

The Secretary of the United States in Congress assembled to whom were referred the several reports of committees on the device for a great seal, to take order, reports

That the Device for an Armorial Achievement & Reverse of the great seal of the United States in Congress assembled is as follows.–

Arms

Paleways of thirteen pieces Argent and Gules: a Chief, Azure. The Escutcheon on the breast of the American bald Eagle displayed, proper, holding in his dexter talon an Olive branch, and in his sinister a bundle of thirteen arrows, all proper, & in his beak a scroll, inscribed with this Motto. "E pluribus unum".-

For the Crest

Over the head of the Eagle which appears above the Escutcheon, A Glory, Or, breaking through a cloud, proper, & surrounding thirteen stars forming a Constellation, Argent, on an Azure field.–

Reverse

A Pyramid unfinished. In the Zenith an Eye in a triangle surrounded with a glory proper. Over the Eye these words "Annuit Coeptis". On the base of the pyramid the numerical letters MDCCLXXVI & underneath the following motto. "novus ordo seclorum"

There were several attempts at getting the right design. Particularly notable is the work of the Third Committee, which includes "a Maiden... on her Head, a radiated Crown of Gold." But in the end silver (argent) seems to have won out; even the glory, which is normally golden, did not have the gold specified. (Everyone draws it as gold anyways.)

Great Seal of Oz

So she hunted in her pocket and found the letter Ozma had given her. Then she handed it through the bars to the rabbit, who took it in his paws and opened it. He read it aloud in a pompous voice, as if to let Dorothy and Billina see that he was educated and could read writing. The letter was as follows:

"It will please me to have my subjects greet Princess Dorothy, the bearer of this royal missive, with the same courtesy and consideration they would extend to me."

"Ha--hum! It is signed Ozma of Oz," continued the rabbit, "and is sealed with the Great Seal of the EmeraldCity. Well, well, well! How strange! How remarkable!"

-- The Emerald City of Oz, by L. FrankBaum

I can't find any pictures of the Great Seal of the Emerald City on the net. However, I did notice that the motto "E pluribus unum" shows up in the climax of the movie, as follows: "Therefore, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Universita Committeeatum E Pluribus Unum, I hereby confer upon you the honorary degree of Th.D."

Links

• http://www.wizardofeyez.com/mason.html
• http://www.greatseal.com/
• http://www.geocities.com/endtimedeception/seal.htm

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Page last modified on August 30, 2003, at 05:36 PM