Create Your Own Revolutionary Seal

In colonial times writers would use wax to seal their letters shut. They would first melt a bit of wax onto their folded letters, then press it down tightly with a seal or a large, flat-topped ring. The designs and symbols on some seals could tell you a lot about the person who sent each letter. You can create your own seal and show support for the revolutionaries.

Revolutionaries wanted to establish a new country separate from British governance. They opposed the practice of "taxation without representation" where money collected in the Colonies was used to finance Great Britain without any say from the colonists about how that money was used or which laws were passed by Parliament. Revolutionary seals might have included stars and stripes, eagles, or the Eye of Providence (the eye and pyramid design you can find on the back of dollar bills.)

Seals might have included mottoes. These were most often in Latin, but were written in other languages as well. Some revolutionary mottoes include:

  • Annuit Cœptis (He [God] has favored our undertakings)
  • Novus Ordo Seclorum (New order of the ages)
  • E pluribus unum (Out of many, one)

Pick a seal type below and design your seal to show where your loyalty lies!

Drawings of three types of seals