The Coat of Arms of British Columbia was officially unveiled by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 1987. The crowned lion standing on the imperial crown incorporates Her Majesty’s Royal Crest.British Columbia is the only sovereign jurisdiction to be granted use of the Royal Crest. To differentiate British Columbia’s Royal Crest from the original, it has been changed to include the crown lion wearing a collar of dogwood flowers.
Below the crown is a helmet – the heraldic symbol of sovereignty – that represents British Columbia’s provincial sovereignty in Canadian system.
The red and white mantling displays Canada’s official colours, which represents the British and the French.
The Union Jack flag with the centre crown symbolizes Canada’s colonial origins. The setting sun indicates that British Columbia is the western-most province and next to the Pacific Ocean which is represented by the blue stripes. The white stripes represent the snow on the Rocky Mountains.
On the left side, the elk represents the former Colony of Vancouver Island. The big horned mountain sheep on the right represents the former Colony of British Columbia.
The Latin motto at the bottom – “splendor sine occasu” – means “splendour without Diminishment” or “Beautiful British Columbia” .
Entwining the motto is another dogwood garland.
1 comment:
Oh, lots of history included.
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