The Great Seal of the State of Delaware was first adopted on January 17, 1777, with the current version being adopted April 29, 2004. It contains the state coat of arms surrounded by an inscription.

Coat of arms

At the center of the coat of arms is a shield of horizontal red, blue and white stripes. On the red stripe is hay and a cob of corn. On the white stripe is an ox standing on grass. Above the shield is a sailing ship. Supporting the shield are a farmer on the left and a militiaman on the right. Underneath the shield is the state motto.

• The sheaf of wheat is taken from the Sussex County
  Sussex County, Delaware
  Sussex County is a county located in the southern part of the U.S. state of Delaware. As of 2010 the population was 197,145, an increase of 25.9% over the previous decade. The county seat is Georgetown. The Seaford Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Sussex County.Sussex County is...
  
   seal and signifies the agricultural vitality of the state.
• The ear of corn was taken from the Kent County
  Kent County, Delaware
  Kent County is a county located in the central part of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is coextensive with the Dover, Delaware, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010 the population was 162,310, a 28.1% increase over the previous decade. The county seat is Dover, the state capital...
  
   seal and symbolizes the agricultural basis of the state's economy.
• The blue stripe, above the ox, represents the Delaware River
  Delaware River
  The Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.A Dutch expedition led by Henry Hudson in 1609 first mapped the river. The river was christened the South River in the New Netherland colony that followed, in contrast to the North River, as the Hudson River was then...
  
  , the main stay of the state's commerce and transportation.
• The ox represents the importance of animal husbandry to the state's economy.
• The ship is a symbol of New Castle County
  New Castle County, Delaware
  New Castle County is the northernmost of the three counties of the U.S. state of Delaware. As of 2010 its population was 538,479, an increase of 7.6% over the previous decade. The county seat is Wilmington. The center of population of Delaware is located in New Castle County, in the town of...
  
  's ship building industry and the state's extensive coastal commerce.
• The farmer with the hoe represents the central role of farming to the state.
• The soldier, a militiaman with his musket, recognizes the crucial role of the citizen-soldier to the maintenance of American
  United States
  The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
  
   liberties.
• The motto "Liberty and Independence" was provided by the Order of the Cincinnati
  Society of the Cincinnati
  The Society of the Cincinnati is a historical organization with branches in the United States and France founded in 1783 to preserve the ideals and fellowship of the American Revolutionary War officers and to pressure the government to honor pledges it had made to officers who fought for American...
  
  , a hereditary organization of American Revolutionary War
  American Revolutionary War
  The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
  
   officers, formed in 1783.

Inscription

The surrounding inscription reads: "Great Seal of the State of Delaware" and the dates 1704, 1776 and 1787.

• The Lower Counties on the Delaware
  Delaware Colony
  Delaware Colony in the North American Middle Colonies was a region of the Province of Pennsylvania although never legally a separate colony. From 1682 until 1776 it was part of the Penn proprietorship and was known as the lower counties...
  
   established their own General Assembly
  Delaware General Assembly
  The Delaware General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the Delaware Senate with 21 Senators and the Delaware House of Representatives with 41 Representatives...
  
   in 1704;
• Separation Day, June 15, 1776, was the day the colonial General Assembly declared Delaware
  Delaware
  Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
  
   an independent state;
• Delaware Day, December 7, 1787, was the day Delaware ratified the United States Constitution
  United States Constitution
  The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
  
  , being the first state to do so.

History

The seal was originally adopted in 1777 with minor changes made in 1793, 1847, and 1907. The current version was adopted in 2004.

• From 1793 until 1847 the figures of the farmer and the soldier were eliminated from the seal.
• In 1847 the motto "Liberty and Independence," was added on a ribbon underneath the shield.
• In 1907 the seal was "modernized" and "THE DELAWARE STATE" was changed to "THE STATE OF DELAWARE".

Blazon

The seal now used as the Great Seal of this State and bearing the arms of this State shall be the Great Seal of this State. It is emblazoned as follows: Party per fess, or and argent, the first charged with a garb (wheat sheaf) in bend dexter and an ear of maize (Indian Corn) in bend sinister, both proper; the second charged with an ox statant, ruminating, proper; fess, wavy azure, supporters on the dexter a husbandman with a hilling hoe, on the sinister a rifleman armed and accoutered at ease. Crest, on a wreath azure and argent, a ship under full sail, proper, with the words "Great Seal of the State of Delaware," the dates "1704, 1776, and 1787," and the words "Liberty and Independence" engraved thereon.

See also

• Coat of Arms of the U.S. States
  Coat of Arms of the U.S. States
  The coats of arms of the U.S. states are coats of arms, adopted by those states that have chosen, that are an official symbol of the state, alongside their seal. Eighteen states have officially adopted coats of arms...
  
  
• Seals of the U.S. states
  Seals of the U.S. states
  The following gallery displays the official seals of the 50 states, federal district, and territories of the United States of America:-See also:* Coat of Arms of the U.S. States* Seals of Governors of the U.S. States* Flags of the U.S. states...
  
  
• List of Delaware state symbols
• Flag of Delaware
  Flag of Delaware
  The flag of the state of Delaware consists of a buff-colored diamond on a field of colonial blue, with the coat of arms of the state of Delaware inside the diamond. Below the diamond, the date December 7, 1787, declares the day on which Delaware became the first state to ratify the United States...
  
  

External links

• Delaware.gov Delaware Facts and Symbols
• The Great Seal of the State of Delaware
• Code 1852, § 463; 24 Del. Laws, c. 89, § 1; Code 1915, § 387; Code 1935, § 361; 29 Del. C. 1953, § 501; 70 Del. Laws, c. 186, § 1; 74 Del. Laws, c. 276, § 1.
• Title 29 of the state constitution http://www.delcode.state.de.us/title29/c003/index.htm