_USNM 60355-M (S-K 111). Figure 132._
[Illustration: FIGURE 132]
This silver-on-copper plate bears the familiar elements of the
Massachusetts seal: Indian, in hunting shirt, with bow in right hand,
arrow with point downward in left hand, and star above right shoulder.
The crest--an arm grasping a broad sword on a wreath of the colors--is
superimposed on a burst of sun rays above. The State's motto is
written around the shield. The earlier plates containing elements of
state arms were for the most part confined to the States of
Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York. No large plates bearing
Pennsylvania State symbols that can be dated prior to 1835 are known.
This seal was not authorized by law until 1885. However, the devices
and the motto were elements of the seal of the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts ordered prepared by the state legislature in 1780 and,
although apparently never formally approved, used as such for many
years. It differs considerably in detail from the seal in use from
1629 to 1684.[109]
[Footnote 109: See ZIEBER, pp. 141-144.]