Great Seal of the Confederacy Paperweight

The details are stunning on this beautiful replica of the Great Seal of the Confederacy. History on the original Great Seal of the Confederacy: History of the Seal: The final design of the Great Seal of the Confederacy was app…

The details are stunning on this beautiful replica of the Great Seal of the Confederacy. History on the original Great Seal of the Confederacy: History of the Seal: The final design of the Great Seal of the Confederacy was approved on April 30, 1863, and a set of embossing dies ordered from the London engraver Joseph Wyon. The seal was first used publicly in 1864. The dies eventually reached Richmond before the end of the war. However, due to the risks of running the Union blockade, the accompanying embossing press was only shipped as far as Bermuda. The dies (crafted in silver) were thus unlikely to ever have been used in any official capacity. The meaning of the Great Seal of the Confederacy: The Seal of the Confederate States prominently features the Statue of Washington in the capital square at Richmond. In the seal, Washington is surrounded with a wreath made of some of the main agricultural products of the Confederacy: wheat, corn, tobacco, cotton, rice and sugar cane. The top margin features the words ‘The Confederate States of America: 22 February 1862’. This date reflects the establishment of the federal government under the new Confederate Constitution when Jefferson Davis was inaugurated as the President of the Confederate States on Washington’s birthday (February 22), 1862, in the capital square at Richmond, then the nation’s capitol. The bottom margin contains the national motto, Deo Vindice, meaning ‘(With) God (as) our defender/protector’.