Coat of arms and flag of New Jersey

Not to be confused with Coat of arms of Jersey.
Coat of arms of the State of New Jersey
Versions
Flag of the State of New Jersey
Great Seal of the State of New Jersey
ArmigerState of New Jersey
AdoptedMay 11, 1896; 128 years ago (1896-05-11) (modified 1928)
CrestUpon a helm Or, a horse's head cabossed proper.
TorseArgent and azure, the mantling azure doubled argent.
ShieldAzure; per pale three ploughs proper.
SupportersIn dexter the goddess Liberty affronté carrying in her dexter hand a pole, proper, surmounted by a cap gules, with band azure at the bottom, displaying on the band six stars, argent; in sinister the goddess Ceres affronté bearing a cornucopia Or bearing apples, grapes, and plums proper
MottoLiberty and Prosperity
New Jersey state historical coat of arms (illustrated, 1876)

The coat of arms of the state of New Jersey includes:

  • A shield with three plows, representative of New Jersey's agricultural tradition.
  • A forward-facing helmet.
  • A horse's head as the crest of the helmet.
  • The female figures Liberty and Ceres, representative of the state's motto (see next item). Liberty is holding a staff supporting a stylized Phrygian cap; Ceres is holding an overflowing cornucopia.
  • The streamer at the foot of the emblem contains the State Motto of New Jersey, "Liberty and Prosperity", and the year of statehood, 1776.

It was originally designed by Pierre Eugene du Simitiere in 1777 and was modified slightly in 1928.[1]

The seal is the central motif in the flag of New Jersey and the great seal of the state of New Jersey.

The coat of arms contains a horse's head; beneath that is a helmet, showing that New Jersey governs itself, and it has three plows on a shield to highlight the state's agriculture tradition, which shows why the state has the nickname “Garden State.” The two Goddesses represent the state motto, “Liberty and Prosperity.” Liberty is on the left. She is holding a staff with a liberty cap on it, and the word “LIBERTY” is underneath her. The goddess on the right is Ceres, goddess of agriculture. She is holding a cornucopia with the word “PROSPERITY” written below her.[2]

According to the minutes of the New Jersey General Assembly for May 11, 1896, the date on which the Assembly officially approved the flag as the state emblem, the buff color is due indirectly to George Washington, who had ordered on September 14, 1779, that the uniform coats of the New Jersey Continental Line be dark (Jersey) blue, with buff facings. Buff-colored facings had until then been reserved only for his own uniform and those of other Continental generals and their aides. Then, on February 14, 1780, the Continental War Officers in Philadelphia directed that the uniform coat facings of all regiments were to be the same as the background color of the regiments' state flag.[3]

The seal is described in New Jersey statute Title 52, §2-1:[4]

The great seal of this state shall be engraved on silver, which shall be round, of two and a half inches in diameter and three-eighths of an inch thick; the arms shall be three ploughs in an escutcheon, azure; supporters, Liberty and Ceres. The Goddess Liberty to carry in her dexter hand a pole, proper, surmounted by a cap gules, with band azure at the bottom, displaying on the band six stars, argent; tresses falling on shoulders, proper; head bearing over all a chaplet of laurel leaves, vert; overdress, tenne; underskirt, argent; feet sandaled, standing on scroll. Ceres: Same as Liberty, save overdress, gules; holding in left hand a cornucopia, or, bearing apples, plums and grapes surrounded by leaves, all proper; head bearing over all a chaplet of wheat spears, vert. Shield surmounted by sovereign's helmet, six bars, or; wreath and mantling, argent and azure. Crest: A horse's head, proper. Underneath the shield and supporting the goddesses, a scroll azure, bordered with tenne, in three waves or folds; on the upper folds the words "Liberty and Prosperity" ; on the under fold in Arabic numerals, the figures "1776". These words to be engraved round the arms, viz., "The Great Seal of the State of New Jersey".

In 2015 a circular letter issued by the State of New Jersey Department of the Treasury addressed the issue of unapproved and incorrect versions of "The Great Seal of the State of New Jersey".[5] Many incorrectly show the underskirt in blue and not argent.

Andrew Maris' proposed flag for New Jersey, winner of the NJ.com contest in 2016

NJ Advance Media and NJ.com ran a contest in 2016 to create a new flag for New Jersey. A winning design by Andrew Maris of Fair Haven was chosen, but no legislative action has been taken to authorize a new flag.[6]

  1. ^ "The Great Seal of the State of New Jersey". NJ.gov. Archived from the original on 2018-04-14. Retrieved 2006-07-15.
  2. ^ State of New Jersey (2002). "The NJ State Flag". Kid's Page – New Jersey State Flag. Archived from the original on 2012-08-05. Retrieved 2012-03-14.
  3. ^ State of New Jersey (1896). "The NJ State Flag". Minutes of the New Jersey General Assembly. Archived from the original on 2007-10-24. Retrieved 2007-10-30.
  4. ^ "New Jersey Statutes, Title 52 §2-1". New Jersey Legislature. Retrieved 2007-01-04.
  5. ^ "Circular 16-06-ADM" (PDF). www.nj.gov. Retrieved 2019-01-03.
  6. ^ Donohue, Brian (2016-06-14). "Here's the flag you chose to replace our drab N.J. state flag". NJ.com. Retrieved 2022-07-18.