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SEAL
SEAL

SEAL

Date1794
Dimensions11.5 x 1.5 cm (4 1/2 x 9/16 in.)
Object numberHF.2022.13.2
DescriptionA large, circular seal or Great Seal embossed with heraldic details on front and back. A cotton ribbon (l: 8cm, w: 1cm) is attached at the top. The center of the outside edge is slightly raised and continues around the entire circumference.

The obverse of the seal has a raised embossed decoration showing a coat of arms with a shield at the center divided into four sections. The details are worn. The shield is surrounded by a circle with embossed Latin lettering around the circumference. Above the shield is a crown with a cross at the center and two scrolls underneath. To the left is a lion standing on its hind legs and wearing a crown. To the right is a unicorn standing on its hind legs with a belt around its middle and a crown around its neck. Below are decorative scrolls with Latin words. Around the outer edge is Latin in larger front. The reverse of the seal has a large tree to the center right. To the center left, in the background is a smaller tree with three trunks. At the bottom is Latin in small font. Around the outer edge in larger font is Latin lettering.


Narrative
This great seal was given to John Murray, an American Loyalist?who was granted land on St. John?s Island in 1794.?Great seals commonly accompanied official documents such as?land deeds.? They are usually made of a mixture of resin and?beeswax. The great seal of St. John?s Island was first approved?on July 14, 1769. On one side is His Majesty?s Armorial?Bearings with the abbreviated Latin inscription ?Georgius?Tertius Dei Gratia Magnae Britannicae Franciae et Hiberniae Rex Fidei Defensor Brunsvici et Lunaeburgi Dux Sacri Romani Imperii Archii-Thesauraius et Elector??(?George III by the Grace?of God King of Great Britain, France and Ireland Defender of?the Faith, Duke of Brunswick and Lunebury, Arch-Treasurer?of the Holy Roman Empire, and Elector?). The reverse has an?early depiction of the Island?s modern Shield of Arms, an island?base with a large oak tree to the right and a smaller tree/shrub?to the left. The large oak tree representing England sits along side three saplings which represent the three provincial counties. Underneath is the inscription ?Parva sub Ingenti??(?the small under the protection of the great?).?