|
Oklahoma has for its state seal a symbol that was developed from the history of the state. The central figures and wreath are from the Great Seal of the Territory of Oklahoma. In each of the five rays of the main star in the Great Seal of the state is the official seal of one of the Five Civilized Indian Nations that together comprised most of the area of present eastern Oklahoma. The upward ray depicts the seal of the Chickasaw Nation with an Indian warrior holding a bow and shield. In the upper left-hand ray is the seven-pointed star bearing a wreath of oak leaves which comprises the seal of the Cherokee Nation. The emblem of the Choctaw Nation is in the upper right-hand ray and is composed of a tomahawk, a bow, and three crossed arrows. In the lower left-hand ray is the seal of the Creek Nation, depicted by a sheaf of wheat and a plow. The lower right-hand ray shows houses, and a factory on the shore of a lake, on which is an Indian hunter paddling a canoe and this comprises the seal of the Seminole Nation. Forty-five small stars surround the central star and these represent the forty-five states that made up the Union at the time Oklahoma became a state on November 16, 1907.
Text and photos from the 1997-1998 Oklahoma Almanac,
Oklahoma Department of Libraries
|
|
