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12/05/2005

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The Belize Coat of Arms

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Description of the Belize Coat of Arms:
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Embellished in the center of the Belize flag is the coat of arms: a white, filled in circle bordered by a green, circular, garland flowing in a clockwise direction.

The coat of arms features:

1.  A mahogany tree: the first European settlers in Belize became mahogany traders and the mahogany trade was once the economical backbone of the colony.

2.  Two woodcutters, the one on the left holding an axe and the one on the right holding a paddle (rivers were the mode of transportation for getting cut logwood back to the settlement; the logwood cutters found themselves paddling further up stream to find fresh logwood areas).

3.  A shield showing the tools of the mahogany trade including a paddle, squaring axe, beating axe, saw and ship (Most of the Mahogany was shipped to Great Britain where it was in much demand for creating fine furniture and creating dyes in the textile industry).

4. A flowing scroll bearing the Latin motto "sub umbra floreo", meaning "under the shade we flourish", or/and implying "under the shade of the mahogany tree we flourish".

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