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

flamingo Flamingos or flamingoes are a type of wading bird in the family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas (including the Caribbea ...

s, 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 A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

of the

Turks and Caicos Islands The Turks and Caicos Islands (abbreviated TCI; and ) are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean and n ...

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

The

were ruled by the British colonial government in the

Bahama Islands The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the a ...

starting in 1799. Tensions between the two territories, 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 The Crown Colony of Jamaica and Dependencies was a British colony from 1655, when it was captured by the English Protectorate from the Spanish Empire. Jamaica became a British colony from 1707 and a Crown colony in 1866. The Colony was prima ...

26 years later. During the 1870s, the territory was accorded its own badge to be utilised on its flag. 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. 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 Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

became independent that same year. 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.

Design

The coat of arms of the Turks and Caicos Islands are

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The vi ...

ed as follows:

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 Spiny lobsters, also known as langustas, langouste, or rock lobsters, are a family (Palinuridae) of about 60 species of achelate crustaceans, in the Decapoda Reptantia. Spiny lobsters are also, especially in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, So ...

allude to the islands' primary industry of fishing. The Turk's Head cactus symbolises the territory's

biome A biome () is a biogeographical unit consisting of a biological community that has formed in response to the physical environment in which they are found and a shared regional climate. Biomes may span more than one continent. Biome is a broader ...

. Taken altogether, the shell, lobster, and cactus represent the flora and fauna of the islands. The crest at the top depicts a white pelican flanked by two

sisal Sisal (, ) (''Agave sisalana'') is a species of flowering plant native to southern Mexico, but widely cultivated and naturalized in many other countries. It yields a stiff fibre used in making rope and various other products. The term sisal may ...

plants – evoking the islands' past trade of

rope-making A rope is a group of yarns, plies, fibres, or strands that are twisted or braided together into a larger and stronger form. Ropes have tensile strength and so can be used for dragging and lifting. Rope is thicker and stronger than similarly c ...

– while the supporters grasping the shield on both sides are

Uses

The shield from the arms features on the

flag of the Turks and Caicos Islands The current flag of the Turks and Caicos Islands was adopted on 7 November 1968, and modified in 1999. Prior to this, the islands had several different flags either proposed or utilised. Nevertheless, the Turks and Caicos Islands did not form a s ...

, and on the standard of the territory's governor.

References

External links

Heraldry of the World: Turks and Caicos Islands
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coat Of Arms Of The Turks And Caicos Islands