Annuit cœptis

(, ) is one of two mottos on the reverse side of the Great Seal of the United States, designed by Charles Thomson, then secretary of the Continental Congress, and William Barton. The literal translation is "[He] favors (or "has favored") [our] undertakings", from Latin ("I approve, I favor"), and ("commencement, undertaking"). Because of its context as a caption above the Eye of Providence, the standard translations are "Providence favors our undertakings" and "Providence has favored our undertakings."

On the Great Seal

Barton explained that the motto alluded to the Eye of Providence: " which alludes to the Eye in the Arms, meant for the Eye of Providence."Papers of the Continental Congress, item 23, folios 137–139. In western art, God is traditionally represented by the Eye of Providence, which principally symbolizes God's omniscience. In 1782, Samuel Adams appointed a design artist, William Barton of Philadelphia, to bring a proposal for the national seal.MacArthur, John D. (2011). . Retrieved 11-25-2011. For the reverse, Barton suggested a 13-layered pyramid underneath the Eye of Providence. The mottos which Barton chose to accompany the design were ("with God's favor", or more literally, "with God favoring") and ("Everlasting"). The pyramid and motto had come from a $50 Continental currency bill designed by Francis Hopkinson.

Change from to

When designing the final version of the Great Seal, Charles Thomson (a former Latin teacher) kept the pyramid and eye for the reverse side but replaced the two mottos, using instead of and instead of . When he provided his official explanation of the meaning of this motto, he wrote:

is translated by the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Mint,Bureau of Engraving, Currency Notes and the U.S. TreasuryU.S. Treasury (2010). "Portraits & Designs". Retrieved 11-25-2011. as, "He [God] has favored our undertakings" (brackets in original). However, the original Latin does not explicitly state who (or what) is the subject of the sentence.In The Oxford Handbook of Church and State in the United States. New York: Oxford University Press, 2010]

A 2024 publication in the Associated Gospel Churches Journal explores the question as to whether makes reference to God, examining the claim that the founders of the United States were deliberate to avoid references to God by choosing only secular mottos.Gardiner, Richard. (2024). "Annuit Coeptis," AGC Journal (Spring 2024) Volume 4, No. 1, p. 13ff.

Classical source of the motto According to Richard S. Patterson and Richardson Dougall, (meaning "He favours our undertakings") and the other motto on the reverse of the Great Seal, (meaning "new order of the ages"), can both be traced to lines by the Roman poet Virgil. comes from the Aeneid, book IX, line 625, which reads "Vergilius Maro, Publius (2919 BC). Aeneid. Retrieved 11-25-2011. ("Jupiter Almighty, favour [my] bold undertakings"). It is a prayer by Ascanius, the son of the hero of the story, Aeneas, just before slaying an enemy warrior, Numanus.

The same language also occurred in an earlier poem of Virgil, the Georgics. In line I.40 of that work is the phrase ". The line is addressed to Caesar Augustus and translates to "give [us] an easy path and nod at our audacious undertakings".

Notes

Annuit cœptis

Bron en licentie