Template:POTD/2020-12-07
This historical depiction of the coat of arms of Delaware was illustrated by American engraver Henry Mitchell in State Arms of the Union, published in 1876 by Louis Prang. A Mid-Atlantic state, Delaware ratified the Constitution of the United States on December 7, 1787, becoming the first state to do so. The shield depicts a wheat sheaf, a corn cob and an ox, representing the importance of agriculture to the state's economy, with the blue horizontal stripe referring to the Delaware River. The ship in the crest is a symbol of the state's extensive coastal commerce, while the shield's supporters are a farmer with a hoe (again representing the central role of farming to the state) and a militiaman (recognizing the crucial role of the citizen-soldier to the maintenance of American liberties). The motto, Liberty and independence, was provided by the Society of the Cincinnati.Illustration credit: Henry Mitchell; restored by Andrew Shiva