Great Seal of the State of West Virginia | |
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Versions | |
Armiger | State of West Virginia |
Adopted | 1863 |
Motto | Montani Semper Liberi Libertas E Fidelitate |
The Great Seal of the State of West Virginia was adopted in September 1863.[1] The obverse center of the seal contains a boulder that has been inscribed June 20, 1863, the date West Virginia became a state. In front of the boulder lie two crossed rifles and a liberty cap as a symbol of the state's fight for liberty. The two men on either side of the boulder represent agriculture and industry. On the left stands a farmer with an ax and plow before a cornstalk. On the other side stands a miner with a pickaxe, and behind him an anvil and sledge hammer. The outer ring contains the text "State of West Virginia" and the state's motto "Montani Semper Liberi", ("Mountaineers are Always Free"; the state nickname is "the Mountain State"). The reverse of the seal, also called the lesser seal, is the official seal of the governor. Its motto reads "Libertas E Fidelitate" ("Liberty out of Fidelity").[2]