Coat of arms of the Turks and Caicos Islands
{{accuracy|date=July 2021}}
{{Short description|Coat of arms}}
{{Infobox coat of arms
|name = Coat of arms of the Turks and Caicos Islands
|country =
|image = Coat of arms of the Turks and Caicos Islands.svg
|image_width = 250
|lesser =Shield of the Turks and Caicos Islands.svg
|lesser_width =150
|lesser_caption =Lesser variant
|armiger = Turks and Caicos Islands
|year_adopted = {{start date|1965|09|28|df=yes}}
|shield = Or in chief a Queen Conch Shell and a Spiny Lobster and in base a Turk's Head Cactus proper
|crest = On a Wreath Or and Azure, On a Mount Vert a Pelican between two Sisal Plants proper
|orders =
|use =
|earlier_versions =
}}
The coat of arms of the Turks and Caicos Islands consists of a gold-coloured escutcheon (shield) charged with a conch shell, lobster and a cactus, supported by two flamingos, and topped with a pelican in the crest. Adopted three years after the islands became a Crown colony, it has been the coat of arms of the Turks and Caicos Islands since 1965. The escutcheon is featured on the flag of the territory. The previous badge featured two mounds of salt in front of a ship, with doors added to the mounds after they were reportedly mistaken for igloos.
History
File:Turks and caicos old seal.svg
The Turks and Caicos Islands were ruled by the British colonial government in the Bahama Islands starting in 1799.{{cite encyclopedia|first1=James A.|last1=Ferguson|first2=John H.|last2=Bounds|encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica|title=Turks and Caicos Islands – History|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Turks-and-Caicos-Islands#ref54819|date=10 September 2020|access-date=6 June 2021|publisher=Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc.}} Tensions between the two territories,{{cite news|title=White Gold: How Salt Made and Unmade the Turks and Caicos Islands|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/white-gold-how-salt-made-and-unmade-the-turks-and-caicos-islands-161576195/|first=Mike|last=Dash|date=14 December 2012|access-date=6 June 2021|magazine=Smithsonian|publisher=Smithsonian Institution}} coupled with financial troubles, led to the Turks and Caicos being given their own charter in 1848, before being placed under the administration of the Colony of Jamaica 26 years later. During the 1870s, the territory was accorded its own badge to be utilised on its flag.{{cite web|title=National Symbols|url=http://www.tcgov.tc/national-symbol.html|publisher=Government of the Turks and Caicos Islands|access-date=6 June 2021|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111008034126/http://www.tcgov.tc/national-symbol.html|archivedate=8 October 2011}} This consisted of two mounds of salt on land in the foreground, awaiting to be loaded onto a ship in the background. A door was erroneously added to one of the mounds, however, when the designer or an official at the Admiralty reportedly mistook the salt mounds for igloos.{{cite news|title=Off the map|url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2004/oct/30/guardiansaturdaytravelsection3|first=Tim|last=Ecott|date=30 October 2004|access-date=6 June 2021|newspaper=The Guardian|location=London}} This was not rectified up until a new coat of arms was instituted in the 1960s.
The Turks and Caicos Islands became a Crown colony in 1962, after Jamaica became independent that same year.{{cite news|title=Turks and Caicos profile|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-20252929|work=BBC News|publisher=BBC News|date=28 May 2018|access-date=6 June 2021}} The islands were consequently reunited with the Bahamas from 1962 until 1973, when the latter territory became independent and the Turks and Caicos were granted their own governor. A new coat of arms for the territory was adopted by royal warrant on 28 September 1965.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y8gcL2PBOVIC&pg=PA130|title=Complete Flags of the World|publisher=Penguin|date=6 January 2009|author=Dorling Kindersley Ltd.|page=130|isbn=9780756654863}}{{cite web|title=Research Note No. 2: Colonial Flag Badges: A Chronology|url=https://flaginstitute.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/restricted_pdfs/research_note_2.pdf|last=Weekes|first=Nick|page=A-6|date=10 June 2008|access-date=27 July 2021|publisher=Flag Institute}}
Design
The coat of arms of the Turks and Caicos Islands are blazoned as follows:{{cite journal|url=https://archive.org/stream/westindiescaribb1976unse#page/332|title=The West Indies and Caribbean Year Book 1976–77|journal=The Caribbean Year Book|year=1926|page=332|publisher=Caribook|issn=0083-8233}}
Or in chief a Queen Conch Shell and a Spiny Lobster and in base a Turk's Head Cactus proper; and for the Crest: On a Wreath Or and Azure, On a Mount Vert a Pelican between two Sisal Plants proper; and for Supporters: On either side a Flamingo proper.
=Symbolism=
The colours and objects on the coat of arms carry cultural, political, and regional meanings. The queen conch shell and spiny lobster{{cite news|title=Dolphin Dreams – Chuck Hesse the Philosopher Preaches Freedom for Captive Dolphins|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-1990-12-16-9012141181-story.html|first=Bill|last=Belleville|date=16 December 1990|accessdate=6 June 2021|newspaper=Orlando Sentinel}} allude to the islands' primary industry of fishing. The Turk's Head cactus symbolises the territory's biome. Taken altogether, the shell, lobster, and cactus represent the flora and fauna of the islands.{{cite web|title=Turks and Caicos Islands – Details|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/turks-and-caicos-islands/flag|date=11 May 2021|access-date=6 June 2021|work=The World Factbook|publisher=CIA}} The crest at the top depicts a white pelican flanked by two sisal plants{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NzhoAAAAMAAJ&q=%22turks+and+caicos%22+sisal+%22coat+of+arms%22|title=Flags of the World|publisher=Frederick Warne & Co.|year=1978|last1=Barraclough|first1=E. M. C.|last2=Crampton|first2=William G.|page=54|isbn=9780723220152}} – evoking the islands' past trade of rope-making{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qM5XAAAAYAAJ&q=%22turks+and+caicos%22+sisal+%22coat+of+arms%22|title=The Complete Guide to National Symbols and Emblems|volume=2|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|year=2010|last=Minahan|first=James|page=760|isbn=9780313345005}} – while the supporters grasping the shield on both sides are flamingos.{{cite news|title=Numismatics|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/01/22/archives/numismatics-unusual-proof-set-ana-conventions.html|page=D39|first=Russ|last=Mackendrick|date=22 January 1978|access-date=6 June 2021|newspaper=The New York Times}}
=Uses=
The shield from the arms features on the flag of the Turks and Caicos Islands, and on the standard of the territory's governor.{{cite web|title=The Flag of the Turks and Caicos|url=https://www.visittci.com/nature-and-history/history/turks-and-caicos-flag|publisher=Visit Turks and Caicos Islands|access-date=6 June 2021}}
See also
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.ngw.nl/heraldrywiki/index.php?title=Turks_and_Caicos_Islands Heraldry of the World: Turks and Caicos Islands]
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